The Coma Patient
by TheLittleAddiction
Summary: Delphine is an intern at a hospital where Cosima is a coma patient. This story is quickly becoming way more, in-depth I suppose is a good word for it, than I thought it would be. Comas and fluff and smut, oh my!
1. The Accident

Delphine was interning at Baylor hospital. She had been there a few months. Her responsibilities were to get coffee and donuts for doctors and nurses and to handle making appointments for patients, and to help out when doctors or nurses were too busy.

Tonight was different than most nights. There had been a bus accident and the patients were being brought in. An SUV had collided with a bus and sent the passengers flying. Thankfully there had yet to be any reported deaths. Everyone in the hospital was on call that night, including the interns. The patients varied from minor cuts and bruises to major head injuries. One woman had a nasty gash on her head and she wouldn't wake up. The doctors and nurses rushed to her help while her and some other interns dealt with the minor injuries. Delphine worked quickly to help the victims, when she was done bandaging one victim, she moved on to the next. She worked like this for ten minutes or four hours, even she didn't know. But soon most of the victims were dismissed from the hospital because they had only minor injuries, like broken arms or legs. There were only a few who remained in the hospital. A man whose back had been broken, an elderly woman with a broken neck, and a young woman who simply refused to wake up.

Delphine went to personally check on the three patients. The man with the broken back was awake, in pain, but awake. He was a big burly, man. He had Tattoos covering his arms and torso. He was friendly despite his pain, he was holding a get well soon bear in his arms and card that could have only been made from a child was sitting on the table next to him.

"How are you feeling ?" Delphine asked.

"I'm great; this pain medication really hits the spot. And it's Robbie. Call me Robbie." The man said. He moved to hold out his hand for her to shake but he winced in pain and the bear he was holding fell to the ground.

"You shouldn't try to move." Delphine said. Robbie tried reaching for the bear. Delphine picked the bear back up and handed it back to him. "Here you go."

"Thanks. This is Teddy, little boy named Harry gave him to me." Robbie said.

"Oh?" Delphine asked. She could distinctly remember patching up a young boy called Harry earlier, he only had some scratches.

"Yeah, he was falling, and I caught him." Tears were filling Robbie's eyes. Delphine looked closer at the card and read 'thanks for saving me!' written on the inside. It quickly dawned on Delphine what had happened. She smiled at Robbie and whispered 'oh.' The medicine was taking effect on Robbie now, his eyes were closing and he drifted off to sleep, the small bear clutched in his arms. Delphine left the room to let him sleep.

Her next stop was the elderly woman whose neck was broken. Her television was on but she was asleep. Delphine decided to turn off the TV for her, but as soon as she did the woman piped up 'I was watching that' so Delphine turned it back on and as soon as she did, she heard the woman snoring. Delphine laughed to herself and left the woman in peace.

Her final stop was the woman who was injured the worst. She walked into the room hoping the woman would be awake at least, but she wasn't. Delphine stood by the woman's bed looking at her. She was beautiful, despite the stitches on her head. Delphine looked at the woman's charts. "Cosima." She said the woman's name out loud. She liked the way the woman's named rolled off her tongue. There was a slight groan from the woman when Delphine said her name. "Cosima?" Delphine asked again. "Mmmhmm" was Cosima's response. "Cosima can you hear me?" Delphine asked again. "Mmm…French" was Cosima's reply. As soon as Cosima spoke, Delphine ran to get the doctor.

"Doctor Reyes! Doctor Reyes!" Delphine practically shouted at the doctor.

"What? What's wrong?" Doctor Reyes asked.

"Your coma patient, she spoke." Delphine said

"Hmm…are you sure? It's late and you seem tired." Doctor Reyes responded.

"I am positive. Please, just let me prove it to you." Delphine grabbed the doctor's hand and rushed her to the patient.

"Cosima? Cosima Niehaus?" Doctor Reyes asked when they reached the room. But Cosima didn't answer. Delphine was dumbfounded. She knows Cosima spoke to her. Doctor Reyes turned to Delphine. "Look Delphine, it's been a long night, you're tired and you're just imagining things. Why don't you go home and get some sleep?" Doctor Reyes asked, placing a gentle hand on Delphine's shoulder.

"But, Doctor, I swear she-" Delphine tried to reply.

"I really must insist you go home, Delphine." Doctor Reyes said. Delphine nodded, defeated. Doctor Reyes left the room and Delphine let out a sigh as she ran her hand through her hair.

"Delphine…" Delphine jumped at the mention of her name. The voice came from the direction of the bed. Cosima had spoken again. Delphine shook her head; she tried to convince herself that she was just very tired, so she left for the night. She would return in the morning and see if she could get a response from Cosima.

When Delphine got home, she decided she needed a nice long hot shower. She hadn't realized it before, but she was very tired. After her shower, Delphine quickly got into a bed and almost instantly fell asleep.


	2. The Coma Patient

Delphine was woken from a vivid dream involving her, Cosima, and the bus accident by her alarm. She realized her heart was racing and that she was breathing hard. When she was fully awake, she was able to shake off the nightmare and get ready for work.

An hour and half later she arrived at work. Once she had accomplished her morning duties, she decided to check on Cosima. She walked to the side of Cosima's bed and said her name once. "Cosima?"

"Delphy?" Cosima replied, there was a small smile on her face.

"It's Delphine." Delphine said.

"Delphine." Cosima replied.

"Can you hear me?" Delphine asked.

"Of course I can hear you, how else would I be talking to you?" Cosima replied.

"I should get the doctor." Delphine said and she left the room. Delphine found the doctor again. "Doctor Reyes, I know this is going to sound crazy, but Cosima spoke to me. She can hear me."

Doctor Reyes considered Delphine for a moment, she knew Delphine wasn't sleep deprived and the sincerity in her voice told her that Delphine was telling the truth. So she let Delphine lead her to Cosima's room. This time Delphine spoke first.

"Cosima. It's Delphine. I have a doctor here who is here to help. Say something, anything." Delphine said as she pleaded with Cosima to say something so she didn't look like an idiot.

"Who's the doctor?" Cosima asked. Doctor Reyes stared at Cosima, she was amazed. She had heard of coma patients being able to hear conversations, but she had yet to hear of a patient actually carrying on a conversation like she wasn't in a coma.

"Cosima, I'm doctor Reyes. I'm here to help." There was no response from Cosima. "Cosima, can you hear me?" She asked, but still nothing.

Delphine tried again. "Cosima?"

"Yeah, Delphine?" Cosima asked.

"Doctor Reyes is here, she's going to help." Delphine replied.

"Why? Is something wrong? What happened?" Cosima asked, obviously she didn't remember the accident.

"Cosima, honey, you were in an accident." Doctor Reyes said. "Cosima?" Still she couldn't get a response from Cosima. "Delphine, say something."

"Cosima did you hear doctor Reyes?" Delphine asked.

"I was in an accident?" Cosima asked.

"Oui, you were." Delphine replies. "Doctor Reyes what's happening?"

"I don't know. I haven't seen anything like this before. I think she can only respond to you, she can hear me, but can't answer." Doctor Reyes said.

"What do we do?" Delphine asked.

"Coma patients are complicated. She could wake up in an hour or a month. We'll just have to wait and see." Doctor Reyes said.

"What do I do?" Delphine asked.

Doctor Reyes met Delphine's worried eyes with her kind eyes. "Just keep her company. That's all I can think to do." Doctor Reyes patted Delphine's shoulder and left the room leaving Delphine alone with Cosima.

"Man, I thought she'd never leave." Cosima said from her bed. Delphine couldn't help but laugh. Delphine wasn't sure of what to do; she had never dealt with a coma patient who was like this before.

"Delphine?" Cosima's voice woke her from her thoughts, "will you read to me?"

"What?" Delphine replied.

"I had a book with me; will you read it to me?" Cosima asked again.

"Oui of course." Delphine looked around Cosima's room for a book and she found it sitting on her bedside table. "Endless Forms Most Beautiful: The New Science of Evo Devo." She read the title out loud; making sure this is what Cosima was talking about.

"That's the one." Cosima said. "Read it to me?"

Delphine sat down in the chair by Cosima's bed and began to read to her. Occasionally Cosima would interject with some trivia about what she was reading. Delphine was enjoying herself. She liked reading to Cosima and she liked hearing what Cosima had to say about it. She decided she really liked Cosima's voice. It was soft and gentle. Delphine didn't know how long she was there reading to Cosima until Doctor Reyes came in to tell Delphine to go home and get some rest. Delphine said good night to Cosima once Reyes had left. "Good night, Cosima." Once she said it, Cosima reached out to grab Delphine's hand. Delphine gasped at the sudden contact. Cosima's hand was soft and warm. It made Delphine feel warm and safe. Delphine knew it was ridiculous, she didn't even know the woman, but she didn't want Cosima to let go of her hand. "Good night Delphine," Cosima whispered and released Delphine's hand. Once she had let go, Delphine felt a sudden coldness replace the warmth that was Cosima's hand. Delphine headed home, looking forward to spending more time with Cosima.


	3. Cosima

Cosima was falling, flying through the air. There were screams all around her and then there was nothing. It was over in an instant for her. When she came to, there were voices all around her, but they were far away. She didn't know if they were real or not. She tried to move, but she couldn't. She tried to open her eyes, but even that was something she was unable to do. She tried to scream, to let people know she was there, but it was if she had forgotten how to speak. She did the only thing she could do, she tried to use her other senses to determine her location. She heard a beeping noise and hurried voices. Then she heard it in the distance, a word that sent ice to her bones: coma. She was in a coma, but she couldn't remember how it had happened. She guessed that she was in a hospital. It was a logical conclusion.

Then she heard her name. This voice was different than the others; this voice that felt real to her. She wanted to reach out to it, to grab hold of it and never let go. Then it said her name again. It was a beautiful voice; she imagined the owner could only be an angel, an angel with a French accent. But then it was gone as soon as it had appeared. Cosima wondered if she had imagined it. Then she heard another voice, this one was far away. The voice spoke and the only thing she heard was one word: Delphine. Then the French angel spoke again. She knew the voice belonged to the name. It was a beautiful name, Cosima thought. It was the only thing that felt real to her, so she had to get to the voice. She tried to reach out to the voice. She tried moving her arms, but it was not use. Then she moved her mouth and the words fell from it as if she had not forgotten how to speak. "Delphine." And then her exhaustion took over her and she fell into a restless sleep, her nightmares filled with screams and a French angel.

The next time she heard the voice, she was able to speak clearly and easily. The words fell easily from her mouth as she spoke to Delphine. She liked the voice, it was soft and it made her feel calm and safe. She heard a conversation going on above her, one was Delphine and the other was a voice she couldn't quite make out. All that she discerned from it was 'accident.' She had been in an accident. She still didn't remember, but she didn't want to. She just wanted to be alone with the voice and for that voice to never stop talking. When she knew she and Delphine were alone, she said 'man I thought she would never leave.' _Good job, Cosima. Flirt with the angel_, she thought. But she couldn't help herself, and it made the woman laugh. Cosima loved it and she knew she would never tire of hearing that laugh. If Delphine's voice was that of angel, her laugh was something more than angelic. She didn't even have a word for the sound of that laugh, but she never wanted it to stop. She then did the only thing she could think of, she asked Delphine to read to her. And read she did. Then after what felt like only minutes, Delphine had to leave. Cosima didn't want her to go. She used all the strength she had and grabbed the hand she knew was next to her. The hand was soft and warm, she almost didn't let go. She knew she had to though, so she simply said 'goodnight.' Cosima knew Delphine would be back in the morning and she couldn't wait. A small smile spread across her lips as she thought of Delphine and her warm hands and soft voice.


	4. Waking Up

Over the next three weeks, Delphine spent most of her time with Cosima. The two women talked about their lives and jobs. Delphine learned that Cosima was going for her PhD in evolutionary development and Delphine told Cosima about the strange people who visit the ER. She told her about the time a man came into the hospital very high and how he was convinced his head had been cut off. Cosima laughed at this. Delphine loved the way Cosima laughed, it was beautiful and Delphine wanted to hear it more. She didn't think she would ever tire of hearing her laugh. Delphine felt herself slowly falling for this woman. She knew it was strange seeing as Cosima was still in a coma, but she couldn't help it. Cosima was funny, smart, gorgeous, and she really got Delphine on a level no one had ever gotten her before.

Still stuck inside her head, Cosima looked forward to every time she got to hear Delphine's voice. The only time she could even communicate with the outside world was when Delphine was there and talking to her. Cosima didn't know why or how it was possible, but she was grateful Delphine was there. And Delphine was there for her when she was sad or scared. Every time a tear escaped her eyes, a soft thumb would wipe it away. Cosima could get lost in the feeling of that thumb on her cheek. Every touch sent warmth through her body; she could really get used to that. Whenever Delphine had to leave, Cosima would imagine what it would be like have that feeling all the time. She knew she was falling for this woman. She still wasn't even sure the woman was real, but it felt real to her. She could have been imagining the whole thing, but she prayed it was real.

Around the fourth week, Delphine was just finishing reading one of her books to Cosima. Delphine finished with a big 'the end,' to the story. Cosima gave a small laugh at this. "I wish I could hear you talk forever." Cosima said quietly.

"And I wish you would wake up." Delphine said, reaching out to gently brush her hand against Cosima's. Then Cosima's eyes fluttered.

Cosima was lost in a dark world, made bright only by Delphine's voice. She could see no way out. She could barely speak, let alone move. But when Delphine told her she wanted her to wake up, something clicked inside Cosima's mind. And then Delphine touched her hand. She used the hand as an anchor back to the real world. She was fighting darkness and her own body, but she needed to get to Delphine. There was a heavy weight on her eyelids, it had always prevented her from opening them, but this time she fought it and she won. Her vision went from seeing blackness to blurry. She had done it; she had woken from her coma. She let her eyes adjust to the light. Once they did, her vision was still a bit blurry because she wasn't wearing her glasses, but she could see clear enough. The first thing she noticed was very curly, blonde hair. She wanted so bad to reach out and bury her hands in it, it looked so soft.

Delphine was focused on her hand drawing small shapes over Cosima's hand and didn't notice Cosima's eyes were looking at her.

"Delphine." Cosima said.

"Hmm?" Delphine asked without looking up.

"Delphine, look at me." Cosima said again. Delphine lifted her head to meet Cosima's eyes. Her eyes were so beautiful, Delphine thought. She could lose herself looking in them.

"Cosima! You're awake!" Delphine exclaimed.

The two women looked at each and smiled. "Hey" Cosima said, "hello" Delphine replied back. It was a little awkward, they were strangers and yet they weren't.

"I should get the doctor now." Delphine said. Cosima nodded in agreement.

When Delphine returned with Doctor Reyes, Cosima had her eye closed and was lying back against her pillow.

"Cosima?" Delphine asked with worry in her voice, afraid that Cosima had slipped back into a coma, but she raised her head at the sound of her name.

"I'm here." She said, "I was just thinking." _Thinking about you_, Cosima thought to herself.

"Oh okay." Delphine responded. "Well Doctor Reyes is going to look you over and make sure everything is alright."

"Okay." Cosima said. After Doctor Reyes had determined Cosima was completely healthy, she was ready to discharge Cosima after one more night, just to be sure. Once Reyes was gone from the room, Cosima spoke to Delphine who was sitting by her bedside.

"How long was I out?" She asked.

"About a month." Delphine replied. Cosima covered her eyes with her hands and let out a sigh. "Are you alright, Cosima?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm good. It's just…coma, y'know?" Cosima said as she wiped a tear from her eyes. "Where are my glasses?"

"Oh um, I didn't know you wore glasses. I think they got lost in the accident." Delphine said.

"What about my purse?" Cosima asked

"Oh, that's right here. Here you go." Delphine said as she handed Cosima her purse. She dug through her purse looking for her spare glasses she always kept with her

"Aha!" She said as she found them. She put them on. "Wow," she said as she looked at Delphine.

"What?" Delphine asked.

"Oh, um, nothing," Cosima said as she quickly looked away from Delphine "I can see a lot better now, that's all." She was trying to cover up the fact that Delphine was even more beautiful than Cosima had imagined while she was in a coma. "Man, I'm starving!" She said. "Anything good to eat around here that isn't hospital food?"

"Oui. There is a restaurant just around the corner. It's nice, I like it there." Delphine replied.

"Awesome." Cosima replied as she began looking for her clothes.

"What are you doing?" Delphine asked

"Getting dressed so we can eat. I need to get out of this place for a while and I was hoping you'd accompany me, if-if that's alright with you." Cosima said, suddenly nervous that Delphine wouldn't want to stay with her now that she had woken up.

"Oh, that would be nice." Delphine said. "But I'm not sure Doctor Reyes would want you up so soon."

"Please, Delphine." Cosima begged, batting her eyelashes at Delphine. Delphine couldn't resist Cosima's puppy dog eyes, so she agreed.


	5. The Restaurant

The restaurant they arrived at was quaint. Cosima had been expecting a big, fancy French restaurant. But this was a small restaurant. The employees greeted Delphine like they saw her every day. They smiled brighter when they saw she was with Cosima, almost like they were surprised Delphine was with someone. Once they sat down, the waiter brought them a very expensive looking wine bottle. The waiter gave Delphine a knowing look; she blushed and looked away from him.

"So this is a nice place." Cosima said as she looked around and admired dark tinted walls covered with a design that fascinated Cosima.

"Mmhmm." Delphine agreed as she took a sip of her wine.

"I noticed everyone is super friendly to you." Cosima said. "Do you come here often or something?"

"Oui. At least once a week." Delphine said.

"They seemed a little surprised you were with someone." Cosima pried.

"That's…euh…because normally I am by myself." Delphine said as she avoided eye contact with Cosima. She knew it was a bit lame to go to restaurant alone.

"Oh. That explains the wine." Cosima replied as she took a sip from her glass. "So you don't bring anyone special here?" She was suddenly curious about Delphine's relationship status.

"Non. I have no one special to bring here." _Except you_, she thought to herself.

Just then the waiter interrupted. "Have you two ladies decided on what you want to eat? Delphine would you like your usual?" He asked.

"Oui, merci Tom." Delphine said.

"And you ma'am?" He asked Cosima

"I'll have what she's having." Cosima replied. "I trust you have good taste, Doctor Cormier." She said when she saw Delphine raise an eyebrow at her response to the waiter; she didn't even know what Delphine was getting.

"I'm not a Doctor yet, Cosima." Delphine said to Cosima.

"Well, Doctor sounds good on you." Cosima said as she flashed Delphine a big toothy smile. Delphine smiled back.

"So, you really don't bring anyone here? Family, friends, boyfriends, girlfriends?" Cosima asked

"Non. My family is back in France and my job keeps me too busy for friends or relationships." Delphine replied.

"Oh." Cosima said happy that Delphine wasn't in a relationship, but her words hurt. _Too busy for relationship_, she was disappointed to say the least.

"What about you? Any friends? Family?" Delphine asked. "Not to be nosy or anything, but while you were in your coma, I never really saw anyone come visit you." Cosima looked down at her hands with a sad expression on her face. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pry." Delphine said noticing that Cosima was slightly upset.

"No, no, no, it's fine. Y'know, school and trying to keep a job keeps me busy." Cosima said. As much as Cosima had tried to tell herself otherwise, she was lonely. Delphine wanted to comfort Cosima. She placed her hand on top of Cosima's and moved her thumb in small circles. Cosima looked down at Delphine's hand on hers and then she looked back at Delphine. They made eye contact. Each woman hoped that they weren't imagining the look the other woman was giving her. It was a look of hope and desire.

"Delphine…" Cosima began. But before she could say what she wanted to say she was interrupted by Tom the waiter brining their food to them. Delphine quickly withdrew her hand from Cosima's.

"This looks delicious, non?" Delphine asked trying to cover up the awkward moment between her and Cosima.

"Yeah, yeah it looks great." Cosima said. They had ordered shrimp and French fries.

"So, uh, Delphine? Cosima asked

"Oui?" Delphine responded

"What happened to me?" Cosima asked

"You don't remember?" Delphine asked surprised

"No, the last thing I do remember is getting on a bus." Cosima said

"Oh, well, um…the bus you were on got hit by a car." Delphine said.

"Oh." Cosima said. "I don't- I don't remember."

Delphine placed her hand back on Cosima's. "It will be alright Cosima," she said reassuringly.

Cosima wiped a tear from her eyes. "Sorry, I'm not usually this emotional," she said.

"You were in a car accident that put you in a coma for a month; I would be worried if you weren't a bit emotional." Delphine said. Cosima nodded her head and the two finished their dinner in silence.

They walked back to the hospital hand in hand.

"Part of me feels like I shouldn't remember." Cosima said suddenly as they reached the hospital.

"Oh?" Was all Delphine could say.

"Yeah, it must have been really bad to put me in coma like that, right?" Cosima asked

"It was pretty bad. Nobody died or anything. Your injury was the worst." Delphine said

"Oh." Cosima said

"But it's all over now. You're fine now, Cosima." Delphine said looking at Cosima.

Cosima looked up at Delphine who was smiling down at her. Cosima smiled back. They reached Cosima's hospital room not long afterwards.

Cosima turned to Delphine. "Thank you Delphine, for everything" she said as she wrapped her arms around the woman's neck. Delphine was surprised, but quickly hugged her back, wrapping her arms around the smaller woman's waist and pulling her as close as she could. Cosima buried her face in Delphine's neck. She fit perfectly in Delphine's arms. It was almost like they were meant to be together, Delphine thought to herself. Cosima was soft and warm. Cosima lost herself in the smell of Delphine, she smelled like vanilla and it quickly became Cosima's favorite smell. They don't know how long they stood in each other's embrace, it could have been a minute or an hour, but neither of them wanted to let go. When they finally pulled away, Delphine put her hand on Cosima's cheek and moved her thumb across her cheek before she bent down and placed her lips on Cosima's cheek. Cosima felt a warmth spread through her as Delphine lingered on cheek longer than was strictly necessary.

"Good night, Cosima." Delphine said when she pulled back from Cosima.

"Good night, Delphine." Cosima said in response.

Cosima climbed back into bed for one last night in the hospital. However, it was not a peaceful sleep; her dreams were filled with screams and crashes. Back at her own apartment, Delphine's dreams were a lot less frightening; they were filled with Cosima.


	6. Going Home

Delphine woke up early the next morning, today was the day Cosima was getting out of the hospital. She was nervous and excited. Today was the day she was going to ask Cosima out on a proper date. Delphine knew it was a bit strange because the most they had talked was when Cosima was in a coma. But she couldn't help herself; she knew she had fallen for Cosima. She felt like a teenager all over again and she couldn't stop smiling whenever she thought of the small be-speckled woman. Delphine had never considered women before, but there was something about Cosima that drew Delphine in. Everything about Cosima fascinated Delphine, from her mind to the way she smiled. Once she was dressed she headed to the hospital.

When she reached the Cosima's hospital room, she found the room empty. Her heart sank.

"Hey, Delphine." Cosima said from behind, which made Delphine jump. Cosima laughed "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

"It's fine, I thought you had already left." Delphine said. Delphine looked Cosima up and down; not even hiding that she was checking her out. Cosima's eyes were framed with black eyeliner. Cosima was wearing a red dress that fit her curves perfectly. She was wearing black tights that Delphine wanted to tear off. And she was wearing a black scarf that Delphine wanted to take off and lavish at her neck.

Cosima smirked and leaned against the doorframe, her armed crossed over her chest. "Nope, I was just getting checking out..." Delphine blushed at this. "…of the hospital. I came to get the last of my stuff."

Delphine was flustered. "Oh, okay. Good, good." She said awkwardly. She was embarrassed about being caught looking at Cosima. "I just, uh, came to say goodbye and uh…"

"And?" Cosima asked playfully. She moved closer to Delphine noting how Delphine's breathing seemed to increase when she was just a foot away. She loved the affect she had on this woman.

Delphine looked down at Cosima's lips and bit her own lip. Delphine was finally brought back to her senses when Cosima placed a gentle hand on her arm. "I wanted to ask you out on a date." Delphine said quietly and then she looked down at the floor a little embarrassed.

"Delphine?" Cosima said and Delphine looked back at her. "I would love to go out with you." Delphine smiled so big, Cosima thought it could light up the world.

"Really? Great!" Delphine says excitedly taking Cosima's hand and intertwining their fingers.

"So, where you gonna take me?" Cosima asks

"It is a surprise." Delphine says

"Ah, alright." Cosima responds. "Hey, the bus should be here any minute. I gotta catch it."

"The bus?" So soon?" Delphine asks

"Well, uh, it sounded like a good at the time. Y'know like getting back on the horse after you fall off. But now…" Cosima says, her voice getting lower and her nerves taking over.

"I could take you home if-if you want." Delphine says

"Really? That would be great." Cosima says. She grabs her purse and puts on a red coat. "Well, allons-y." She says with a smile.

Delphine leads her to her car in the parking garage, never letting of Cosima's hand. When they reach they car, Delphine opens the passenger door for Cosima.

"Mm...so chivalrous." Cosima says which makes Delphine blush a little.

Once Delphine is in the car, Cosima insists on continuing to hold Delphine's hand. It's not practical for driving, but Delphine likes the way Cosima's hand fits in hers.

"So where to, Cosima?" Delphine asks

"I live by the Minnesota University Campus. My parents bought me a house over there." Cosima said looking down at her and Delphine's intertwined hands, she looked sad again. Delphine didn't know why Cosima seemed so sad all of the sudden. She wanted to be there for Cosima. She wanted to keep Cosima company for as long as she could, so she took the long way to the university. Cosima and Delphine enjoyed small talk accompanied by small moments of silence. It was a nice silence, it wasn't awkward. The two were just enjoying the other's company. Too soon they arrived at Cosima's house. It was a very large, beautiful house, the house itself seemed to fit Cosima's personality perfectly.

"Is it just you here?" Delphine asked.

"Yeah, yeah it's just me." Cosima said and the sadness returned. Delphine understood immediately why Cosima seemed so sad; she was alone.

"Oh." Delphine responded. "Can I walk you to your door?"

"Yeah, yeah of course." Cosima smiled a little at that. Delphine hopped out of the car and opened the door for Cosima, taking her hand into hers in the process. When they reached the door, Cosima reached out to Delphine and pulled her into a crushing hug. "Thank you, Delphine. For everything." She said into Delphine's shoulder. They held each other tight for what seemed like ages savoring the other's warmth against them. When they finally released each other, Delphine bent down to place a kiss on each of Cosima's face, she lingered longer than necessary.

Cosima watched as Delphine left. Then she unlocked the door to her house and went inside. It was just as Cosima had left it. There were still dishes in the sink, there was laundry everywhere, and worst of all, it was quiet. Cosima made her way up to her room. She dug through her drawers and found some pajamas. She put them on and climbed back into her bed that seemed too large for one person. She drifted off into a nightmare filled sleep. Each night the nightmare got worse. She was on a bus, there was screaming, crashing, and blood.


	7. First Date

The next morning Cosima woke covered in sweat and her heart was pounding so hard she was afraid it would burst out of her chest. She was breathing hard too, as if she had been running. She was terrified, she knew she had another nightmare about the accident, but she still couldn't remember the accident and the nightmare was quickly fading away. She sat up, wrapped her arms around her knees and buried her head in her arms not unlike a child does when they are afraid. She let the quiet sobs turn to loud cries until she couldn't cry anymore. She knew the accident was over and that she was fine, but it still haunted her. She had to take her mind off of it, so she decided to clean her house today. She wasn't meeting Delphine until the evening anyway, it's not like she had better things to do.

She showered first, letting the hot water calm her down and relax her. When she got out she dried off and put on some old sweats, she could change later. Then she set about cleaning her house. She stripped her bed of its sheets and blankets and took them to the washer, nearly tripping down the stairs in the process. She put record on her record player in the living room and turned on some good old rock n' roll. She was feeling like today would be an Elvis day. Her mood was instantly lifted as Elvis' voice floated through the house. She knew all the words and chords by heart. She cleaned house as she sang and danced along to The King.

It was a few hours later when she got a call. "Hello?" she answered. She turned off her record so she could answer the phone

"Bonjour, Cosima." Delphine's voice floated from the phone.

"Hey, Delphine!" Cosima responded. "What's up?"

"I'm was calling to let you know I'm on my way to pick you up for our date." Delphine said.

"What?" Cosima didn't realize it was so late. "Shit."

"Is everything okay? Are we still on for tonight?" Delphine asked a little worried.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, we're totally still on. I just uh…got a little distracted…" Cosima trailed off not wanting to admit that she had forgotten about their date.

"Oh, okay. Well I will be there in twenty minutes." Delphine said

"Great! Cosima responded and she hung up the phone. "Shit, shit, shit," Cosima said as she rushed upstairs to the bathroom to get ready. She put on her make up as fast as she could, making sure her eyeliner was on point. Then she set about figuring out what to wear. She dug through her closet, pulling out different clothes and trying them on, but none seemed to work. "Ugh! What am I going to wear!?" She practically shouted at a deity whose existence she doubted. She flopped down on her bed thinking hard and staring at the ceiling. Then she heard the doorbell ring. "Shit!" She said. She got up quickly and pulled on her black tights and a red dress she had been considering and some black heels. Then she practically flew downstairs, somehow managing not to fall. She collected herself before opening the door.

"Hey, Delphine." She said. This time it was Cosima who unashamedly checked out Delphine. Delphine was wearing a simple black dress that hugged her curves perfectly. When she looked up at Delphine, their eyes met.

"See something you like?" Delphine asked a smirk growing across her face. Cosima blushed a little.

Cosima was going to say something witty in return, but Delphine's smile made her forget what she was going to say, so she simply responded with a quiet "yeah."

"Well allons-y." Delphine responded. She took Cosima's hand and led her to her car. She opened the door for Cosima and then got in.

"So, you gonna tell me where we're going?" Cosima asked

"Nope. You just have to wait and see." Delphine responded

"Ah, come on Delphine. Please?" Cosima asked, giving her big puppy dog eyes and batting her eyelashes.

Delphine nearly gave in, but she shook her head. "Nope. That won't work, Cosima."

"Ugh, fine. I'll wait." Cosima said. She hung her head in disappointment.

Delphine laughed softly. "Pauvre petit chiot" she said.

Cosima looked back at Delphine. "You're the puppy." She said as she smiled. "But seriously, you have hair like one. If you were a puppy, you would totally be a cocker spaniel." She said matter-of-factly.

Delphine raised an eyebrow at her. "Oh really? Well what kind of puppy would you be?"

Cosima considered this for a moment. "Hmm…I've always like St. Bernards."

"But those are very large dogs and you are very small." Delphine responded

"What? You're saying I can't be a big dog because I am a small person?" Cosima asked feigning being hurt.

"Oui, that is exactly what I'm saying." Delphine smiled as she responded.

"Alright then, Dr. Cormier, what kind of puppy do you think I would be?" Cosima asked

Delphine thought about her answer for a moment. "You would be…" Delphine trailed off, one of her hands frozen in mid-air. "Oh I know it, it's right on the tip of my tongue, but I can't remember the name."

"That means you don't know." Cosima said trying not to laugh at the very focused look on Delphine's face.

"No, no, I do. It starts with a P."

"Pitbull? Pomeranian? Pekingese? Cosima offered

"Puli!" Delphine snapped her fingers as she suddenly remembered the name. "It's a Puli. That's what you would be."

"What's a Puli?" Cosima asked

"It's a little dog with dreads." Delphine replied. "Google it and you'll see."

Cosima pulled out her phone and googled the dog. "Oh, whoa, you're totally right!"

Delphine smiled "I know."

"Y'know, you're kinda hot when you're smug. I mean, you're hot anyways, but smugness doesn't look hot on everyone." Cosima said.

"I'll take that as a compliment." Delphine said. She smiled when she realized that Cosima had just called her hot. "We're here." Delphine pointed to a large building in front of the parking lot she pulled into. Cosima was so caught up in Delphine that she had forgotten they were going somewhere.

"An aquarium?" Cosima asked

"Not just an aquarium, but one of the best and the biggest I have ever seen." Delphine responded

A large smile spread across Cosima's face. "I have always wanted to come here! But I could never find the time with school and everything! Delphine, this is amazing!" Cosima was so excited she practically jumped out of the car. She pulled Delphine by the hand and quickly walked her to the entrance. While Delphine was paying for their tickets, Cosima was bouncing on the balls of her feet. She couldn't wait to see everything.

Cosima pulled Delphine by the hand and dragged her along looking at all the different sea life. Sometimes she would point out a particular type of fish and tell Delphine all about it. As much as Delphine loved the sea creatures, she loved watching Cosima look at them more. She was excited and fascinated by them. Her eyes lit up every time she saw a fish she recognized.

"Look, Delphine! It's Nemo!" Cosima excitedly pointed out a clownfish.

"I think it's called a Clownfish, Cosima." Delphine laughed at Cosima's slightly child-like behavior.

"No, it's Nemo. And there's Dory!" She pointed to a regal blue tang. "Y'know, from Finding Nemo!"

"Finding Nemo?" Delphine asked. She didn't know what Cosima was talking about.

"Oh come on, don't tell me you've never seen Finding Nemo? Little fish gets lost; his dad fights the whole ocean to find him?" Delphine shakes her head no. "Oh my god, we are so watching Finding Nemo at some point."

Delphine laughed again. "Okay, one day." Delphine looked back at the tiny clownfish and when she looked back at Cosima, she noticed Cosima had disappeared. Delphine scanned the crowd for her, but she couldn't see anyone matching Cosima's description. Then she felt a hand turn her around, Cosima had reappeared again looking particularly happy.

"Hey, I found the stingrays and they let you touch them! Come on!" Cosima said as she dragged Delphine to the stingrays. They reached the stingrays and Cosima immediately went to touch one. Delphine was a little hesitant to touch the creatures. "Oh, come on, they're not gonna hurt you." Cosima said. She grabbed Delphine's hand and gently guided it towards a stingray. Delphine had never touched anything like a stingray before, it was smooth and rough at the same time.

"Cool, huh?" Cosima asked as she turned to face and look up at Delphine

"Oui." Delphine replied looking down at Cosima and then at their hands. Cosima still had hers on top of Delphine's and she wished Cosima would never let go.

"Come on," Cosima said, bringing Delphine's attention back to Cosima, "there's one last thing I want to see." She tightened her grip on Delphine's hand, intertwining their hands in the process and pulled her towards the shark tunnel. It was a large tunnel and all around them were sharks moving slowly above them and beside them. It was a truly amazing sight. Delphine looked down at Cosima who was, for once, lost for words. A smile spread across her face as she looked at all the sharks.

"You like it?" Delphine asked even though she already knew the answer.

"I love it." Cosima responded. She walked towards the nearest shark; a large sand tiger shark. "These guys look scary, but they're actually pretty harmless. And over there is a nurse shark," she pointed to a shark laying on the ground, "most sharks have to keep swimming to keep water flowing over their gills, but those guys can bring water into their mouths so they don't have to keep swimming. They can just lay there."

"You know so much about sharks and sea creatures." Delphine said

"I watch Shark Week every year, I haven't missed one year." Cosima said but Delphine looked at her like she didn't know what she was talking about. "Don't tell me you've never seen Shark Week? A whole dedicated to sharks on the discovery channel?"

Delphine shook her head, "No, I haven't seen it."

"I think we need to dedicate a day to all the shows you haven't seen, Cormier." Cosima said

Delphine laughed "I would like that very much." The two women locked eyes and Delphine moved closer to Cosima. She placed her hand on Cosima's cheek and rubbed her thumb across Cosima's lips. Just then, Cosima's stomach rumbled.

"Well that ruined the mood." Cosima said.

Delphine laughed and dropped her hand. "I'm guessing you're hungry?"

"Yeah." Cosima responded "Are you?"

"Oui, let's go get something to eat." Delphine replied.

They left the aquarium together. "So what are you in the mood for?" Cosima asked and Delphine blushed a bit at the thought that crossed her mind. "I'm buying."

"Whatever you want." Delphine said

"Okay, well there's a burger joint just around the corner. I saw it earlier." Cosima replied.

"Sounds great." Delphine said.

They made their way to the burger restaurant. Cosima ordered a cheeseburger and a coke and Delphine ordered a hamburger and a Dr. Pepper.

"So, Delphine." Cosima asked after they sat down with their food. "You've never seen Finding Nemo and you've never seen Shark Week."

"I have not." Delphine confirmed. "Why?"

"We're going to figure out what you haven't seen and we are going to watch it together." Cosima said

"Okay," Delphine said "What shows do you watch?"

"What shows don't I watch?" Cosima said "Okay, um…there's Doctor Who! I love Doctor Who."

"I have never seen it." Delphine admitted.

"Great, I am so getting you into Doctor Who." Cosima said. "It's about a time travelling alien."

"That sounds interesting." Delphine said

"Oooh! Star Trek and Star Wars! Seen them?" Cosima asked

"Nope." Delphine replied.

"Oh, you have been missing out Cormier." Cosima replied leaning back in her seat. "This weekend, you and I are sitting down and watching the shows you've been missing out on. As long as you don't mind spending the whole weekend with me."

"Non, I do not mind. I am already looking forward to it." Delphine said as she leaned forward.

The waiter came by and handed the check to Cosima. After they paid, Delphine took Cosima home. They enjoyed more talk of all the shows Delphine hadn't seen. When they reached Cosima's house, Delphine walked her to the door. The two women faced each other.

"Thank you for today, Delphine. I really enjoyed. I think that was the best date I've ever had." Cosima said smiling.

"Thank you for going with me." Delphine said moving towards Cosima and taking her hands in hers. "I had a wonderful time as well."

Cosima took the initiative this time and grabbed Delphine's face and pulled her towards her. Cosima kissed her. Delphine was a taken aback at first, but quickly kissed Cosima back. It wasn't a deep kiss, it was was slow, each woman getting to know the other woman's mouth. When they broke apart, they both sighed. Delphine pressed her forward against Cosima's.

"You wanna come in?" Cosima asked. She wanted Delphine to say yes, mostly because she didn't want to sleep alone anymore.

"I should get home. I have to be at work early in the morning." Delphine said. She really wanted to stay, but she did have to be at work early in the morning.

"You sure? Cosima said as she played with Delphine's hands.

"I am sure." Delphine said

"Ah, okay." Cosima said. She was disappointed.

"I will call you tomorrow. Goodnight, Cosima." Delphine leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on Cosima's lips.

"Goodnight, Delphine." Cosima said. Cosima watched Delphine leave and walked back inside. After she closed the door, she leaned against it smiling to herself. Then she walked back to her room, and after getting ready for bed, she crawled into bed for a restless sleep.

A few hours after falling asleep, Cosima woke up screaming and covered in sweat. This time she remembered all of the accident and it didn't go away after she woke up. Her eyes were wet with tears and she couldn't stop crying. She didn't know what to do, but she didn't want to be alone, so she did the only thing she could do. She called Delphine. After a few rings, Delphine picked up.

"Allo?" Delphine's sleepy voice floated through the phone.

"Del-Delphine?" Cosima choked out between sobs.

The sound of being upset woke Delphine up. "Cosima, what's wrong?"

"I-I remembered the accident." Cosima said

"I will be right there." Delphine hung up the phone and rushed to Cosima's house. She got there in less than twenty minutes. She knocked hastily at the door. When Cosima finally opened the door, Delphine immediately wrapped her arms around the small girl. Cosima let her tears fall into Delphine's shoulder. Delphine led Cosima to the couch in the living room and pulled her onto the couch with her. She held Cosima close to her, wrapping her arms protectively around the smaller girl and laying them carefully on the couch. Cosima buried her face in Delphine's neck and wrapped her arms around Delphine's waist. Cosima's cries slowly became sobs and her sobs eventually became soft breathing. Soon, Delphine drifted off to sleep as well.


	8. A Day of Relaxation

Delphine woke the next morning, a smell of coffee emanating from the kitchen.

She realized she was alone and called out, "Cosima?" Cosima emerged from the kitchen with two cups of coffee.

"Hi" Cosima said. She hands Delphine a cup of coffee

"Hey." Delphine replied. She accepts the coffee and takes a sip.

"I'm sorry about last night. I guess I just freaked out a bit." Cosima said looking down at her hands; she was a bit embarrassed by how she had reacted.

Delphine sets down her coffee and takes Cosima's coffee from her hands and sets it down on the coffee table. Then she takes Cosima's hands in her own. "Do not be sorry chérie, I am happy to be here for you." Cosima looked at Delphine like she had just told her she loved her. "Do you want to talk about it?" Delphine asks.

"I, uh, I don't know." Cosima says

"We don't have to if you don't want to." Delphine reassures her.

Cosima thinks about it. She looks down at their intertwined hands and at how Delphine is rubbing her thumb across her knuckles, it's a comforting gesture.

"I remember getting on the bus." Cosima starts, her voice a little shaky. "I was heading home from the library and I decided to take the bus home. I took a window seat. I didn't pay much attention to people getting on or off. I was reading when it happened." Cosima took a deep breath, trying to steady her breathing. "I heard tires screeching and a woman screamed. I felt like I had been hit by a truck, well I guess I had been. I hit my head on the side of the bus and then everything was black. Then I heard you." She looks up at Delphine as she finishes recounting the accident. "Every time I fall asleep, it's like it's happening all over again." Her voice breaks at the last word, but she doesn't cry.

Delphine reaches out and caress Cosima's cheek. "It's over chérie, you are safe now." Cosima relaxes at Delphine's touch. Delphine's phone rings, interrupting the two.

"Allo?" Delphine asks "Non, non, sorry I can't come in today. I'm feeling a little sick. I'm fine, merci." She says and hangs up.

"Oh god, I made you miss work. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for you to miss work because of me." Cosima says

"Non, no, chérie it's fine. I do not mind. I'd rather be with you." Delphine says

"But-" Cosima starts but Delphine interrupts her with a kiss. "Mm, okay, feeling less guilty now." She says when they break apart. "Will you let me make you breakfast, then?"

"Of course." Delphine replies. "Do you need any help?"

"No, you just sit here and relax and I'll make you some breakfast." Cosima says and makes her way to the kitchen. Delphine sits quietly and turns on the television. About two minutes later Cosima returns from the kitchen. "Uh, Delphine?" She asks

"Oui?" Delphine asks

"So y'know I was totally in a coma for a month, well as it turns out I'm kinda totally out of food. I don't even have cereal or pop tarts." Cosima says apologetically. "I could buy you breakfast, if you like."

"You bought me dinner last night, though. Why I don't I buy us breakfast?" Delphine asks.

"No, no, after all you've done for me I want to buy you breakfast." Cosima says flashing a million dollar smile at Delphine. Delphine knows there's no point in arguing with Cosima, so she agrees.

About forty minutes later, they arrive at the local IHOP both women still in their pajamas. They enjoy their breakfast and some small talk. Delphine notices that Cosima looks a little distressed though.

"Cosima? Are you okay?" She asks.

"Yeah, yeah, it's just, there's a lot I need to do and I don't know where to start. I need groceries and I lost a whole month of school. I'll probably have to retake classes." She says.

"Why don't we take things one step at a time? How about I go with you to buy groceries today and tomorrow you can worry about school." Delphine suggests.

"Okay." Cosima agrees flashing Delphine another smile.

"But first, I do need to go home and get some clothes." Delphine says

"I need to get dressed too." Cosima says.

Delphine took Cosima back to her house so she could get dressed and then Delphine went back to hers so she could get dressed. About an hour and half later the two women set out for the supermarket. Cosima insisted on buying a bunch of junk food, but Delphine tried to argue that she should have some healthy food instead. Delphine wanted to buy Cosima some healthy food and only after using her big puppy dog eyes did Cosima agree to let Delphine buy food for her. Delphine insisted that she was going to make Cosima a healthy dinner.

After they left the supermarket, Cosima and Delphine headed back to Cosima's house. They spent the day together, lounging on Cosima's sofa. Cosima got Delphine to watch Finding Nemo. Cosima pretended not to notice when Delphine discreetly wiped a tear from her eyes when the mother died. Cosima insisted on making Delphine her famous peanut butter and banana sandwich for lunch.

In the evening, Delphine set about making dinner for Cosima. Cosima insisted on helping. They were making pasta. Delphine let Cosima cut up the vegetables, which was not such a good idea considering Cosima promptly cut her finger.

"Ow! Shit!" Cosima said.

"Cosima!" Delphine grabbed Cosima's bleeding hand and held a paper towel to it. "Hold that there while I get a band-aid." She rushed to the bathroom and returned with a band-aid. Delphine cleaned the wound and then put the band-aid on Cosima's injured hand. "Does it hurt?"

"A little." Cosima responds. "You could kiss it to make it better." Cosima says, a smile spreading across her face. Delphine smiles in return and takes Cosima's hand gently in her own and places a gentle kiss on the inside of her hand over the band-aid.

"Better?" Delphine asks quietly.

"Much." Cosima responds quietly. Delphine leans toward Cosima and kisses her. Cosima kisses back. The kiss is just as gentle as the first one. Cosima tests the waters by running her tongue across the bottom of Delphine's lips. Delphine opens her mouth to allow Cosima entrance. Cosima gently pushes her tongue into Delphine's mouth and Delphine gently pushes back. Before the kiss can become more heated, the smoke alarm goes off and both women jump apart in surprise.

"Merde!" Delphine shouts

"Shit!" Cosima says at the same time.

When they realized it was the smoke alarm they both laugh.

"I think we burnt the toast." Delphine says once they stop laughing.

"Worth it." Cosima says with a smirk.

"So cheeky." Delphine says as she smiles back at her.

"You like it." Cosima flirted back.

"Mmhmm." Delphine agreed. She got back to making dinner and Cosima attempted to get back to chopping the vegetables.

"Cosima, non, why don't you take a break and go watch some tv. I've got this?" Delphine suggested. She didn't want Cosima to hurt herself again.

"What? Afraid I might accidentally cut myself again?" Cosima asks.

"Oui." Delphine steps towards her and places a small kiss on her lips and while Cosima is distracted, she takes the knife from her hands.

"Hey! I wanted to help!" Cosima argues

"You are helping. I can do this a lot faster if I don't have to worry about you." Delphine says

"Fine." Cosima sighs and walks back to the living room to watch some tv.

A little while later dinner is ready. Delphine sets the table and prepares the pasta for Cosima. They enjoy their dinner with some wine and small talk. When they're done Cosima helps with the dishes. Then they relax on the couch for a couple of hours before Delphine has to get home. Cosima leans her head on Delphine's shoulder.

"Delphine, can you stay until I fall asleep?" Cosima asks quietly.

"Oui, I will." Delphine responds. It doesn't take much longer for Cosima to fall asleep. Delphine carefully moves from the smaller girls embrace and picks her up. She carries Cosima all the way up the stairs, wondering why on Earth she didn't get Cosima to her bed before she fell asleep. She tucks Cosima into bed and kisses her forehead. "Goodnight, Cosima," she whispers.


	9. The Star Wars Marathon

The rest of the week passes slowly. Cosima and Delphine were only able to talk on the phone and occasionally go out to dinner or lunch. Delphine's work schedule keeps her busy and Cosima works with her advisors to get back into school. She had to drop her other classes because she knew she would never be able to catch up after being away for a month, so she will start again the next semester. When the weekend arrives, Cosima almost jumps Delphine when she arrives at her house in the early afternoon. She hugs Delphine tight and kisses the breath out of her.

"Whoa." Was all Delphine's reply when the kiss broke.

"I missed you." Cosima says

"I've missed you too." Delphine replies smiling down at Cosima.

"Okay, I decided I'm gonna get you into Star Wars. This is going to be our Star Wars weekend. We're gonna start with the original trilogy because that's the best and then we'll move on to the prequel trilogy.

By the middle of the first movie, Delphine is really into the movie and when the first Death Star blows up, Delphine actually cheers and claps which makes Cosima laugh.

"Wow, Cormier, I've turned you into a nerd." Cosima laughs.

"Are you making fun of me?" Delphine asks as she leans closer to Cosima.

"No, of course not, nerds are hot." Cosima responds leaning into Delphine.

"So you're calling me hot?" Delphine asks. She's so close to Cosima now that she can feel Cosima's breath on her lips.

"Oui." Cosima mocks Delphine's accent.

Delphine closes the distance between them and presses her lips against Cosima's. This kiss, like the others, is gentle. Cosima soon deepens the kiss when she pushes her tongue into Delphine's open mouth. Delphine moves her tongue against Cosima's and lowers her down on the couch. Cosima pulls Delphine's waist down on top of hers so that all of Delphine's weight is on Cosima. Delphine kisses from Cosima's lips to her jaw and then she moves on to her neck. Cosima tangles her hands in Delphine's hair as Delphine sucks at Cosima's pulse point. When Delphine bites down Cosima's pulse point Cosima lets out a moan and says 'bed.'

They make their way up to Cosima's bedroom, discarding clothes on their way there. Somehow they manage to make it up the stairs without falling. However, Cosima nearly trips because she thinks there is another step to go when there isn't one. Delphine catches her though and pushes her against a wall to keep her steady. It is at this point that the rest of their clothes are discarded. Delphine latches on to Cosima's neck again, biting and sucking hard enough to leave a mark. Cosima's hands grab hold of Delphine's breasts and roll the hardened nipples around her fingers. Cosima backs them up into her room until the back of Delphine's knees hit the bed, and then Cosima lowers the two of them down on it.

Delphine roams her hands across Cosima's back as Cosima begins sucking at Delphine's breast while one hand props her up and the other continues its ministrations against the other breast. Delphine moans when Cosima bites down, her nails digging into Cosima's back. Cosima moves one leg between Delphine's thighs and presses against her sensitive spot. Delphine grinds into her leg as Cosima kisses up Delphine's chest to her clavicle and then focuses on her neck. Cosima bites down on Delphine's neck and then licks the pain away. Delphine begins grinding harder into Cosima's leg.

"Cosima, please." Delphine breathes out.

Cosima kisses her and trails her hand down Delphine's stomach to where Delphine needs her. Cosima moves her fingers through Delphine's wetness, both women groaning at the contact. Cosima focuses her fingers on Delphine's clit rubbing slow circles against the woman writhing beneath her. Delphine clings to Cosima, her nails digging into her back again.

"S'il vous plait!" Delphine practically begs Cosima.

Cosima obliges Delphine and slides a finger into her, letting her get use to the feeling before adding another finger. Delphine moans loudly when Cosima pushes a second finger deep inside her. Cosima begins moving her fingers slowly until Delphine demands she go faster. Cosima curls her fingers against Delphine's wall and at the same time presses her thumb hard against Delphine's clit. Delphine spews nonsensical French words as Cosima works her towards orgasm. Delphine tangles one hand in Cosima's hair while her other hand grabs a fistful of sheets as Cosima curls her fingers one last time and Delphine arches her body off the bed shouting Cosima's name as she comes. Cosima continues to slowly pump her fingers inside of Delphine until Delphine releases her.

Cosima kisses Delphine again when she's sure Delphine has her breath back and then she starts grinding against Delphine. Delphine grinds up into Cosima and then flips them over. Delphine begins kissing down Cosima's body. She kisses her neck and then moves to suck at Cosima's breasts. Cosima is grinding hard into Delphine aching for release. Delphine senses this and moves her hand between them; she hesitates. Cosima senses her hesitation and moves Delphine's hands to where she's needed. "Here" she says as she helps Delphine enter her. Delphine moves her fingers slowly, getting use to the feeling of being inside of Cosima, driving the smaller woman wild. Delphine attempts to copy Cosima's earlier movements and experiments with pressing a thumb against Cosima's clit eliciting a moan from the smaller woman. She doesn't think she's doing it exactly right, but it seems to be working. It doesn't take much longer before Cosima is saying Delphine's name as her orgasm rips through her. Delphine collapses beside Cosima.

Cosima rolls over on her side to face Delphine. She rests her arm across Delphine's stomach. Delphine looks at her and smiles. Cosima smiles back.

"You know Delphine," Cosima starts, a smirk spreading across her face, "you are very loud." She maneuvers her hand into Delphine's.

Delphine blushes. "I am not! You are the loud one!"

"Pretty sure you damaged an eardrum." Cosima says playfully as she plays with Delphine's hand.

Delphine blushes even more, "I have never-!" She begins but Cosima cuts her off.

"Screamed so loudly." Cosima finishes for Delphine, not that Delphine was actually going to say that. "Well, Miss Cormier, I am flattered."

Delphine opens her mouth to argue, but Cosima's smile makes her melt so she closes her mouth and silently agrees. "You are so cheeky."

"You like it." Cosima repeats from earlier in the week and leans in to kiss Delphine. "Y'know we haven't finished Star Wars," she says when she pulls away.

Delphine laughs. "Well why don't you go get it and we can finish watching it up here?"

"Okay, I'll get us some eskimo pies while I'm at it." Cosima says.

"Eskimo pie?" Delphine asks. "I do not think I know it."

"Well prepare yourself, you're about to become a craven addict." Cosima says noting how adorable Delphine looks with tousled hair.

"I think I already am." Delphine responds as she looks at Cosima.

Cosima smile and puts on a robe and then goes downstairs for the Star Wars movies and the dairy treats. She makes sure to pick up her and Delphine's discarded clothes on the way back up stairs. She and Delphine put on their shirts and underwear then indulge in their snacks as the movie begins to play. Once the ice cream is eaten, the ice cream stick is thrown away and Cosima snuggles into Delphine, who proceeds to wrap the smaller girl in her arm. Cosima falls asleep half-way through the movie, but Delphine makes herself stay awake to finish it. She was utterly shocked when Darth Vader revealed he was Luke's father. Once the movie was over, Delphine turned off the television and fell asleep with Cosima wrapped tight in her arms. Cosima didn't have a nightmare that night.


	10. Martha Niehaus

Cosima wakes the next morning with the smell of vanilla in her nose. When she opens her eyes, she is greeted by a sleeping Delphine. Cosima feels Delphine's arms and legs wrapped around her. She feels safe and warm. She leans in and kisses Delphine awake. When she feels Delphine kiss her back she lets go.

"Morning." Cosima says as she smiles at Delphine.

"Good morning." Delphine replies sleepily.

"Sleep well?" Cosima asks

"Oui. Did you?" Delphine asks

"Yeah. I didn't have one nightmare." Cosima says

"Really?" Delphine asks

"Uh-huh." Cosima responds. "Looks like you made my nightmares go away."

"Maybe I should stay here more often." Delphine suggests.

"Maybe you should." Cosima says back.

Delphine reaches up to caress Cosima's cheek. She rubs her thumb across Cosima's lips. "I will stay with you as long as you want." She said and she meant it. This small, strange girl who had popped into her life unexpectedly had come to mean so much to her.

Cosima smiled at Delphine's words. "Okay," was all she said. "Hey! We still have four more Star Wars movies to watch!"

Delphine laughed. "You are such a nerd."

"In the wise words of Han Solo: I know. But you can't tell me you don't love them." Cosima responded.

Delphine laughed again. "I do like them."

They spent the rest of the day together in bed watching Star Wars or trying to. Delphine was trying to watch the Phantom Menace, but Cosima was bored with it and decided to distract Delphine. She began by slowly moving her hand up Delphine's thigh.

"Cosima, I am trying to watch the movie." Delphine said and Cosima moved her hand away.

A few minutes later and Cosima was moving her hand across Delphine's stomach, just above her panty line.

"Cosima." Delphine said again and Cosima stopped.

Cosima decided to up her game and placed a kiss on Delphine's neck while her hands reached under Delphine's shirt, scratching gently at her stomach. Delphine's attention was quickly changed from the movie to the hand moving across her and to the tongue on her neck. Delphine quickly maneuvered in the bed to where she was on top of Cosima with her hands pinning Cosima's above her head. Cosima was a little shocked but pleased at Delphine's change in demeanor. Needless to say, they skipped the last half of the first movie. Cosima said it didn't matter anyways, the first one is not too important to the story. They ended up skipping some of the second movie as well; Cosima said it was fine because Anakin was a bit of a creeper in that one. The only movie they did finish that day was Revenge of the Sith. Cosima felt like it made her nerdier than ever, but she did get emotional when Anakin turned to the Dark Side. She was pleased to see that she was not alone in her sorrow. Delphine was upset too. Cosima slipped her hand into Delphine's when the Clone Army was marching up the steps of the Jedi Temple.

When the movie was finally over, it was late. When the credits were rolling across the screen, Cosima turned to Delphine. "So, did you love it? Tell me you loved it."

Delphine looked back at Cosima. "Oui, I loved it."

Cosima grinned. "Knew it."

"What now?" Delphine asked

"Well I am hungry," Cosima said "we could go out to eat, nothing fancy, just something quick."

"We are a mess." Delphine said gesturing to their wild hair and clothes.

"That is why they invented the drive through." Cosima smiled

"Okay." Delphine said smiling at Cosima.

They pulled on some clothes and found the nearest place to grab a bite to eat. Once they had their fill, they returned to Cosima's house and promptly fell asleep.

In the morning, Cosima woke up alone. Delphine had gotten up early it seemed. She was coming out of the bathroom as Cosima started to wonder where she was.

"Good morning, ma chérie." Delphine said as she walked over to Cosima and gave her a kiss.

"What time is it?" Cosima asked

"Five-thirty in the morning. I have to go to work today, but I will see you tonight." Delphine said. After she left, Cosima fell back to sleep.

When Cosima did eventually get up, she showered and ate some breakfast. After she got out of the shower she checked her phone, she had a missed call. She smiled at first thinking it was Delphine. But then she saw the number, she recognized that number. The number only called her when something serious had happened. Her hands were shaking as she called the number back, she was worried. It had been a little over a month since she last saw her mother. She had been meaning to go see her again, but she had been so caught up with getting back to life from being in a coma that she hadn't had the time.

"Hello?" Came through the phone when her call was finally answered.

"Hello, Doctor Smith. Is everything okay?" She asked tentatively.

"Hello, Cosima. I think you need to come in, there are some things we need to discuss."

"Alright." Was all Cosima could say.

Cosima hung up the phone and rushed out the door. Her heart was pounding and her breathing uneasy as she entered the nursing home.

"How is she?" Cosima asked when she found Doctor Smith.

"She's not doing so well, I'm afraid." He said. "Her mind is deteriorating. She's having a hard time."

There were tears in Cosima's asks. "How long" she could barely bring herself to ask the question. "How long does she have?"

"I'm not certain. These things are complicated, but I think it's important you be with her." Doctor Smith said. He put a comforting hand on Cosima's shoulder. He walked her down the hall to where her mother was staying.

Cosima stood at the door watching her mother sleep after the doctor had left. She thought of all the good times she had with her. She thought of the first time she met this woman, she was twelve and she was in an orphanage. Everybody said she was great, but no one wanted to adopt her. She was starting to lose hope that she would ever be adopted; everybody knows that most teenagers don't get adopted. She was scheduled to meet with a couple a few days after she turned twelve. A large African America man, about six-foot tall and his smaller, yet still slightly intimidating wife walked through the doors of the interview room that day. Cosima remembered being first intimidated by the large man, but as soon as they got to talking she started to like him. They talked about their interests. The couple very quickly realized how smart Cosima was. The man, James, told Cosima he was a physicist. And the woman, Martha, told Cosima that she was a neurosurgeon. Cosima was impressed. They all talked about science for hours. A year later, on her thirteenth birthday, Cosima was going home with them. She had finally found her family after thirteen years. Cosima thought it was the best day of her life and didn't think anything could make it better. But when they got home, James and Martha had gone out of their way to throw her a surprise party; she remembered how she cried when it happened and how her new parents had pulled her into a very big hug. She remembered getting pulled into hugs from all her new cousins and aunts and uncles and grandparents. It was the best night of her life.

"Cosima?" Her mother stirred on the bed, waking her from her thoughts.

"Momma?" Cosima said as she walked towards her mother and hugged her.

"How's my baby girl? What happened to your forehead?" Her mom asked when she noticed a small scar from Cosima's accident.

"Oh, it's nothing. It was just a little accident." Cosima said, she didn't think her mother needed to know the details. "How are you?"

"I'm fine sweetheart. But not as fine as you it would seem. Who's the lucky guy? Or girl?" Her mom asks. Her mom always knew when she was seeing someone; it was like a weird super power. She remembers not telling her mom about her first girlfriend. That was an awkward night at the diner. Being an overprotective parent, her mom had followed her to dinner that night. That's also the night her mom learned about her bisexuality. She didn't say anything at the diner, but her parents talked to her when she got home. She remembered how afraid she had felt when she thought her parents might not want her anymore because of it. Then she remembered the crushing hugs she got when both parents told her they would love her no matter what.

"Cosima, am I gonna get a name or do I have to beat it out of you?" Her mother joked pulling Cosima out of her thoughts.

Cosima laughed. "Her name is Delphine. She's going for her doctorate. And she's got really great hair."

"Well when am I going to get meet her?" Her mom asked.

Cosima got nervous. She hadn't planned on introducing them yet. Delphine still didn't know Cosima was adopted. "Soon, I'll bring her by soon."

"How about tomorrow?" Her mom asked.

"Yeah, tomorrow sounds good." Cosima said.

Just then, Doctor Smith knocked on the door. "Sorry, I don't want to kick you out, but visiting hours were over about fifteen minutes ago."

"Right, sorry, I'll just go then." Cosima said. She really didn't want to leave.

The small interruption had distracted her mother. She was looking at Doctor Smith and then she turned back to look at Cosima.

"Cosima! Honey, when did you get here?" Her mom said surprised.

Cosima nearly broke down right then. Her mother's Alzheimer's was slowly destroying her and she could do nothing to help her. Cosima held back her tears and hugged her goodbye. When she got back to the parking lot, she let the tears fall from her eyes

Cosima eventually stopped crying. She sat in her car and tried to calm down. A few minutes later, her phone rang. It was Delphine. Cosima pulled herself together and tried to sound like she hadn't just been crying.

"Hello?" Cosima answered, her voice was still a bit shaky and she hoped Delphine didn't notice.

"Cosima? Are you home? I've been knocking for the last ten minutes." Delphine answered.

"Shit, I completely forgot you were coming over. I'll be right there. Just give me twenty minutes." Cosima said.

She hung up before Delphine could ask her where she was. When she finally got back to her house, Delphine was sitting on the bench by the door. Delphine noticed something was off as soon as she saw Cosima. There was no smile, her eyes were red like she had been crying, and her whole demeanor looked utterly sad. Delphine got up and hugged Cosima and then pulled back, taking Cosima's hands in her hands.

"What's wrong, chérie?" Delphine asked gently.

Cosima stood looking at Delphine, trying to find the words to tell her.

"We need to talk." Cosima pulled Delphine inside her house and sat her down on the couch. Cosima took a deep breath before she spoke. Delphine never let go of her hands. "I've been at the nursing home for the last few hours. That's why I forgot why you were coming over. My mom is there. She's not doing so great. She has Alzheimer's." Cosima took another breath to calm down. "They don't think she has much time left." She wouldn't look at Delphine as tears started to roll down her cheeks again. Delphine pulled Cosima's face up gently and wiped away the tears. "I'm scared Delphine."

Delphine didn't know what to do. So she did the only thing she knew how to do. She wrapped Cosima in her arms and held her until she stopped crying.

"I don't know what to do Delphine. She's always been there for me and now she's sick and I can't do anything about it." Cosima said when she had stopped crying.

"You can be there for her. That's all she needs right now." Delphine finally said. "And I'll be here for you."

"Really?" Cosima asked.

"Oui, I will never leave you Cosima." Delphine said then she paused before she spoke again. "Can I meet her?"

Cosima smiled a little. "Yeah, yeah of course. She wants to meet you too. In fact, I told her I would bring you by tomorrow."

"You told her about me?" Delphine asked.

Cosima smiled again. "No. She just knew."

"Oh. Will you tell me about her?" Delphine asked

"I will, but not now. I think I need to rest." Cosima said as she yawned.

"I think you are right." Delphine said. "Let's get you to bed."

Delphine helps Cosima get into bed and then she crawls in next to her. Cosima falls asleep with Delphine drawing nonsensical patterns on her arm.


	11. Meeting Mom

It was noon when they arrived at the nursing home. Cosima's mood was better than it was the day before. She was excited about introducing Delphine to her mom. Delphine was nervous about Cosima's mother. "Don't worry, babe. She's gonna love you." Cosima said when she sensed Delphine's nervousness. Delphine nodded her head. Cosima pulled her by the arm into her mother's room.

"Momma?" Cosima called out, her mother was sitting up watching television.

"Cosima! There's my baby girl. Who's the beautiful young lady you brought to see me?" Her mother asked

"Momma, this is Delphine. Delphine this is my mother." Cosima said.

Delphine reached out to shake Cosima's mom's hand. "Bonjour, Mrs. Niehaus."

"Call me Martha." Martha said as she pulled Delphine in for a bone hug.

"Alright momma, let the poor woman go." Cosima laughed.

"It's nice to meet you." Delphine said when Martha let her go.

"It's nice to meet you too." Martha said.

"So how did you two meet?" Martha asked

"Well we met at a hospital." Delphine started. Cosima had forgotten to tell Delphine not to mention her accident.

"Hospital? What were you doing at a hospital?" Her mother asked getting concerned.

"I-uh-broke my ankle when I fell off my bike." Cosima said.

"Again?" Her mother asked. "How many times do I have to tell you to be careful?"

"I'm sorry momma; I'll be more careful next time." Cosima said.

"I hope you were wearing your helmet. I don't want my baby girl to end up with a head injury." Martha said.

Cosima and Delphine looked at each other. "So, you're a doctor Delphine?" Martha asked

"Well, doctor in training. I'm just an intern for now, but I should be able to become a doctor soon." Delphine said.

"So you'll be making the big money. You'll be able to take care of everyone." Martha said.

"Everyone?" Delphine asked.

"My grandbabies!" Martha said. Delphine turned red at the thought. Cosima just laughed.

"We're not quite there yet, momma." Cosima said.

"Ah, I see. But soon, yes? I want to see some grandkids before I kick the bucket." Martha said. Cosima was suddenly sad again.

"We'll see." Delphine said. "So, Cosima tells me you're a neurosurgeon." She's trying to change the subject.

"Oh, yes I was. I was the best in the country." Martha says.

For the rest of the day, Martha tells Delphine about her job. And then the subject changes and Martha starts telling Delphine funny stories about when Cosima was a little girl. Delphine laughs and Cosima is embarrassed by some of the stories. She really wished her mother hadn't just told Delphine about the time she ran out of the shower with shampoo still in her hair because she thought a burglar was in the house, it turned out to be her parents' friends.

"You told me you and dad were going out for the evening! You never said you would be bringing people over!" Cosima tries to stay, but Delphine just laughs harder.

Too soon it was time to leave. Cosima and Delphine say their goodbyes to Martha who pulled them both in for another bone crushing hug.

"Hey, Delphine," Cosima says as they leave the nursing home and taking Delphine's hands into her own, "thank you for going with me today."

"I enjoyed it; your mother is a very funny person." Delphine said "And you were a funny little girl."

"Y'know, we have home videos, we could watch them if you want." Cosima says.

"Oui, I would love that! I bet you were an adorable little girl." Delphine says.

"Were? What do mean were? I'm still adorable!" Cosima says

Delphine laughs. "Oui, you are very adorable."

Cosima stops them and turns to face Delphine; she stands on her toes and kisses Delphine slowly. The kiss ignites a fire inside Delphine. "Come home with me, Delphine."

When they get back to Cosima's house, Cosima promptly pushes Delphine against a wall. She struggles to unbutton Delphine's blouse. "Too many buttons," she breathes against Delphine's lips. When Cosima finally gets Delphine's blouse off, Delphine had already removed Cosima's shirt and bra. Out of frustration, Cosima shoves Delphine down on her couch. Cosima removes her pants and underwear and then moves to remove Delphine's pants and underwear. She strips Delphine of her pants and then works more slowly taking off Delphine's panties. She's teasing Delphine. She moves her hands across Delphine's thighs and places kisses on the inside of her thigh as she slowly moves up Delphine's body.

"Cosima, don't tease." Delphine says through gritted teeth.

Cosima does as Delphine asks and moves her center. She moves her tongue slowly across Delphine's sex. Delphine groans loudly at the sensation. Cosima repeats her movements, teasing Delphine again. Delphine's hands find a place in Cosima's dreads in order to hold Cosima there.

"Cosima," Delphine lets out another groan.

Cosima focuses her tongue on Delphine's clit, moving painstakingly slow. Delphine's nails dig into Cosima's head as she lets out a moan of pleasure. Cosima circles Delphine's clit, applying pressure every so often. Delphine wraps her legs around Cosima's head, holding her in place. Cosima quickens her ministrations and takes Delphine into her mouth, sucking on her clit.

"Cos-don't stop!" Delphine breathes out. Delphine's moans only grow louder as Cosima continues moving her tongue against Delphine. With one last flick of her tongue, Delphine is arching herself into Cosima and Cosima is drinking up Delphine's orgasm.

Once Cosima has Delphine calmed down from her high, Cosima moves to straddle Delphine on the couch. She kisses Delphine's necks and Delphine moves her hands up Cosima's back. She'll never tire of the way Cosima feels against her. Delphine brings Cosima's face to hers so she can kiss her. When they kiss, Delphine can taste herself on Cosima. The taste sends another wave a heat down to her core. Delphine moves her tongue against Cosima's. Cosima starts to grind against Delphine. Delphine moves her hand down to Cosima's sex. She pushes two fingers inside of Cosima which sends a loud moan through the house. Cosima moves against Delphine's fingers and Delphine curls her fingers inside of Cosima with every thrust. Delphine switches their positions until Cosima is lying on her back on the couch. Delphine removes her fingers from inside of Cosima. Cosima whimpers at the loss of contact.

"Hey, hey, wha-what's wrong?" Cosima asks breathlessly.

Delphine answers her question by moving down Cosima's body.

"You don't have to y'know if you don't want to." Cosima says her breathing labored.

"I want to." Delphine replies.

Delphine situates herself between Cosima's legs. She places a tentative kiss on Cosima's clit. The moan she gets from Cosima is all the encouragement Delphine needs. She tries to copy Cosima's movements and moves her tongue against Cosima's clit. Cosima presses her hands into Delphine's hair. Delphine continues to lick and suck at Cosima's sex. She never thought she would enjoy pleasuring a woman this way, but she does. She loves the way Cosima tastes. She loves how she can make Cosima cry out with just her tongue. She loves it even more when Cosima comes against her mouth; she takes everything Cosima gives her.

Delphine moves back up Cosima's body to place a tender kiss on her lips. Cosima pushes Delphine off of her and gets off the couch. She pulls Delphine upstairs back to her room. A few hours later and they finally collapse on the bed and fall into a peaceful sleep.


	12. The Funeral

Over the next few months, Cosima and Delphine visited Mrs. Niehaus as often as they could. They would listen to all the stories Mrs. Niehaus told, even if she retold some of the stories. Cosima's favorite story was the story of how she and James met. They were both at a science symposium to give speeches over their respective fields. They both attended each other's speeches. After James' speech, Martha approached him and told him how much she enjoyed his speech. Then James told Martha how he had seen her speech and how he had enjoyed it and the rest was history. Martha swears it was love at first sight for the both of them. Delphine asked Cosima about her father, but she always found ways to avoid the subject and told her that she would talk about it one day.

Delphine's favorite story was always the story about the day Martha and James adopted Cosima. Delphine had been slightly surprised when Cosima had first shown her pictures of her parents, before they met Martha. Then she explained that she was adopted and Delphine understood. Cosima told Delphine about the first time they met and how she had just known these people could be her parents. When Martha told the story of how they met, she says that she just knew Cosima was going to be her baby girl. Martha always gets tears in her eyes when she tells the story and so does Cosima, but Delphine would never point that out. Delphine could see how much these two women loved and respected each other.

Sometimes Cosima would go alone when Delphine was working and Martha would always ask where her future daughter-in-law was. Cosima would laugh at that. Although she secretly thought it would be wonderful to be able to spend the rest of her life with Delphine. Her mom would always ask about Delphine and how she was doing on days like this. Martha loved the way her daughter lit up whenever she talked about Delphine.

Over the months that Cosima and Delphine visited Cosima's mother, Cosima and Delphine grew closer. Delphine spent less and less time at her apartment and more time at Cosima's. Half of Cosima's closet was dedicated to housing some of Delphine's clothes. Delphine practically lived with Cosima, but neither of them said anything about it.

It was the fourth month after Delphine had been introduced to Cosima's mom that it happened. Delphine had left for work early in the morning. Cosima had gone to school and afterwards was planning on visiting her mother with Delphine. After classes, Cosima headed to the hospital to visit her mom. Delphine would meet her there when she was done with work. Sometimes Martha would insist on Cosima lying in bed with her. At first, Cosima protested that she wouldn't fit, but now Cosima climbed into bed with her mom just like she did when she was a little girl during a big storm. Today was not any different. Cosima had climbed into bed with her mom like she always did when her mom asked, Cosima told her mom about her school and her thesis and her mom would listen intently. After a while, Martha's breathing slowed down.

"Momma, you still awake?" Cosima asked, thinking her mother had drifted off to sleep as she sometimes did.

"I'm-I'm here baby girl." Martha breathed out, struggling to form words. "Cosima?"

"Yeah, momma?" Cosima asked worried.

"I love you." Martha said.

"I love you too, momma." Cosima replied.

Martha's eyes closed and she let out one last breath. The arm she had around Cosima relaxed and fell to the side.

"Momma?" Cosima asked, though she knew that she wouldn't get an answer. Cosima called the doctor in, but there was nothing he could do; Martha Niehaus was dead. Cosima sat back down in the chair beside her mother's bed. She laid her head on the bed and cried.

A while later, whether it be ten minutes or two hours Cosima didn't know, she felt a warm hand on her shoulder. When she looked up, she met Delphine's sad and concerned eyes. Cosima allowed Delphine to pull her up from her chair and lead her out of the room and back home. The car ride home was silent, Delphine never let go of Cosima's hand. When they reached Cosima's house, Delphine pulled Cosima into a hug and let her cry.

The funeral for Martha Niehaus was a week later she was to be buried next to her husband. Delphine had helped Cosima arrange the funeral. Cosima called the rest of the family and informed them of the date of the funeral. The funeral saw the whole family together again. Delphine was surprised by just how big Cosima's family was. At the funeral, Cosima's family offered their condolences. They all hugged and cried together. Then when it was over, they parted ways again.

"I want to tell you about them," were the first words Cosima spoke when she and Delphine go home.

"Okay." Delphine says. Cosima pulls a photo album off the shelf and sits down on the couch with Delphine.

Cosima pulls out a photo album from a shelf and sits back down on the couch with Delphine. She opens to the first page. "This is when they first brought me home. In this picture, I accidentally got cake all over dad. He laughed and put cake in my face. Then I shoved some more in his face." The picture showed everybody laughing as Cosima shoved cake in her dads face.

"This picture is where he they took me to the park. Dad insisted on pushing me on the swing, even though I was too old for that." The picture showed Cosima smiling as her dad pushed her higher, he was smiling even bigger than he was. "That was my favorite park. We used to go there all the time. I haven't been there since he…" Cosima trails off and a tear runs down her cheek. Delphine wipes it away.

"What happened to him, chérie?" Delphine asks.

Cosima takes a breath. He had been working late at the lab, testing a new hypothesis. He was driving home in the rain. A drunk driver ran a red light and he..." Cosima trailed off again as more tears ran down her face. Delphine holds Cosima. "After it happened, the family started getting together for holidays every year to support momma. But when she got sick, nobody knew what to do and we all just sort of drifted apart. I miss them Delphine. I miss them so much."

"I know chérie, I know." Delphine held her girlfriend as she cried feeling helpless because there was nothing she could do.


	13. The Picnic

Over the next two weeks, Cosima and Delphine drifted apart. Cosima was upset at the loss of her mother and pulled away from everyone. There were days she wouldn't even get out of bed. She went back to school, but she stopped participating in class discussions. She barely got her homework in on time. Delphine was determined to change this.

"Delphiiiine," Cosima groaned as Delphine pulled her out of Cosima's house, "where are you taking me?"

"I am taking you on a date, mon amour." Delphine replied

"Where are we going?" Cosima asked

"It is a surprise." Delphine responded. Cosima groaned again as they got into Delphine's car.

When they got to their final destination, Delphine pulled a sleeping Cosima out of the car.

"Mmm…no…sleep." Cosima grumbled.

"Come on, chérie. Wake up." Delphine whispered in Cosima's ear.

Cosima reluctantly got out of the car. "Delphine, where-," she stopped mid-sentence looking at their location; it was the same park that her parents always brought her to. Cosima looked back at Delphine with tears in her eyes. "Delphine-" Cosima says again

"Is it too much?" Delphine asks

"No, no, it's perfect." Cosima says.

"Good, because I brought us a picnic." Delphine says.

"A picnic?" Cosima says her mood has become ten times better in the last few minutes.

"Oui, come." Delphine pulls her to a particularly inviting looking of grass and lays out a blanket. She sets down a picnic basket and pulls Cosima down to sit next to her.

"I haven't had a picnic in years." Cosima says.

"I must admit, this is my first." Delphine replies.

"Really? Well I'll be sure to make your first time memorable." Cosima says and kisses Delphine quickly on the cheek. Delphine laughs at Cosima's double-talk.

"I'm sure you will." Delphine replies. "I made your favorite."

"Peanut butter and banana sandwiches?" Cosima asks. Delphine nods and hands her a sandwich. "It's official; I have the best girlfriend ever."

"So do I." Delphine says as she looks at Cosima. Cosima smiles at Delphine's words.

"Oh, I made you one more thing." Delphine says

"What is it?" Cosima asks

Delphine reaches into the basket and pulls out some brownies.

"Mmm…brownies," Cosima says as she takes one. "Delphine Cormier, did you make me pot brownies?" She asks as she takes a bite.

"Oui, I did." Delphine says as she takes a bite of one of the brownies.

"You are amazing." Cosima says as she finishes her brownie. "Come here." Cosima pulls Delphine against her and they lie on the blanket together. Delphine cuddles into Cosima and nuzzles her nose into Cosima's neck.

"It's so beautiful out here," Cosima says eventually.

"It is." Delphine agrees looking at Cosima.

"You're not even looking." Cosima says

"Non, I am looking at something much better." Delphine replies and leans in to kiss Cosima.

Cosima laughed and pulled away. "You have to catch me first!" She ran off toward the swing set. Delphine chased after her. Delphine caught up to Cosima quickly. She grabbed Cosima from behind, her arms snaking around the smaller woman's stomach and spinning her around. Cosima laughs as Delphine buries her face in Cosima's neck when she sets Cosima back on the ground. Delphine places small kisses on Cosima's neck and shoulder.

"Ooo, Delphine! Push me on the swing!" Cosima says as she pulls away from Delphine again. She skips to the swing-set and plops down on one of the swings. Delphine follows and moves behind her. Delphine kisses Cosima on the cheek before she pushes her on the swing.

"I bet I can go higher than you," Cosima says after a few pushes. Delphine gets on the swing next to Cosima and pushes herself, determined to go higher than Cosima.

"Come on Cormier, you call that high?" Cosima teases and Delphine laughs.

Eventually Delphine swings as high as Cosima. "Hey Delphine watch this!" Cosima says. She kicks her legs back and then forward one more time before she jumps out of the swing. She lands on her feet and turns to Delphine. "Come on, jump off!"

"Non, I will fall!" Delphine says as she starts slowing down.

"You are a chicken, Cormier." Cosima says as she walks towards Delphine.

Delphine slows down her swinging until she has stopped. Cosima moves to stand directly in front of Delphine, she puts her hands on top of Delphine's holding onto the chain of the swing. Cosima is taller than Delphine due to Delphine sitting in a swing. Cosima leans down and kisses Delphine slowly and then she pulls back slightly.

"I love you." Cosima says.

Delphine kisses Cosima back and stands up and then she lets go. "Je t'aime, Cosima." Cosima smiles and pulls Delphine by the collar of her shirt and kisses her deeply.

"Let's go home." Cosima says.

"D'accord." Delphine replies.

"I need a shower," Cosima says when they get home. "Care to join me?"

Delphine smiles and follows Cosima to the bathroom.

Cosima pulls off Delphine shirt and bra. She runs her hands across Delphine's stomach and breasts. Delphine lets out a sigh when Cosima squeezes her breasts. She works on removing Delphine's pants as Delphine removes her shirt. Their movements are slow and methodical; each woman savoring the others' skin against hers, reveling in the softness. Delphine runs her hands along Cosima's strong arms. Delphine moves hands to Cosima's waist and then up her back. She removes Cosima's bra. Cosima pulls Delphine into the shower with her after the last few bits of clothing are removed, letting the steam wash over them.

Cosima pours some shampoo in her hands and lathers it into Delphine's hair. Delphine closes her eyes and relishes in feel of Cosima's fingers threading through her hair. Once Delphine's hair has been properly shampooed and conditioned, Cosima begins to wash Delphine. She moves slowly, tenderly, never breaking eye contact with Delphine until she turns her around and washes her back. She places a small kiss on Delphine's shoulder before pulling her under the water and rinsing her off.

Then it's Delphine's turn to wash Cosima. She moves slowly, carefully. She's never been a situation so intimate before, but she likes it. When she has Cosima facing away from her, she drops the luffa and uses her hands to clean Cosima's breasts. She kisses Cosima's neck and elicits a sigh from Cosima. Cosima reaches her hand behind her to grab hold of Delphine's hair and pull her closer so that they could kiss. The kiss is slow and deliberate, slowly building in intensity. Once Cosima's tongue enters Delphine's mouth, Delphine moves her hand down Cosima's torso to her sex. Cosima's breath hitches as Delphine slowly traces circles around her clit. Delphine kisses down Cosima's neck, sucking lightly. A moan escapes into the steam around them.

Delphine runs her hand down Cosima's arm and then braces Cosima's arm against the shower wall. Delphine slowly slides two fingers into Cosima, earning a loud moan from Cosima. Cosima's head falls back against Delphine as Delphine slowly thrusts her fingers in and out of Cosima. Delphine nuzzles Cosima's cheek as she continues to pump in and out of Cosima. She gently applies pressure to Cosima's clit with her thumb, earning her another pleasurable moan from Cosima. She feels Cosima tighten around her fingers and curls her fingers into Cosima. "Je t'aime," Delphine says as she curls her fingers one final time and Cosima comes with Delphine's name on her lips. They stay like that for a minute or two while Cosima comes down from her high.

When Cosima does make it back to the world, she turns in Delphine's arms and kisses her. Delphine wraps her arms around Cosima's neck as Cosima gently pushes Delphine's back against the wall. Cosima trails her hand down Delphine's stomach and moves her fingers slowly over Delphine's clit. Cosima kisses Delphine's neck, and then trails kisses up to Delphine's ear. She tugs at Delphine's ear with her teeth, and then soothes the bite with a lick. Delphine groans at the contact. Cosima removes her mouth from Delphine's ear and moves to look at her as she pushes two fingers inside her. Cosima pushes her thigh against her hand so that she could move her fingers deeper inside Delphine. Delphine bites her lip to keep from moaning, but fails miserably as another loud moan fills the air. She wraps her leg around Cosima's waist, urging her even deeper. Cosima moves her hand onto Delphine's thigh to hold her there. Delphine pulls Cosima's face from her neck and into a kiss. Cosima pumps harder into Delphine, their kisses becoming sloppy as Delphine nears climax. Cosima pulls back from the kiss as she feels Delphine's walls tighten around her fingers. She watches as Delphine comes shouting her name.

She removes her fingers from Delphine and circles her arms around Delphine's waist and leans into Delphine's chest laugh bubbling from her chest.

"What?" Delphine finally asks "What's so funny?"

"That echoed." Cosima said looking up at Delphine, a smile breaking across her features. Delphine blushes. "No, don't be embarrassed. It makes me feel really great."

"You are really great." Delphine says as she leans her forehead against Cosima's forehead. Cosima smile grows wider.

"Come on, I'm tired." Cosima says. She pulls Delphine out of the shower. The two get dried off and climb into bed after putting on pajamas.

"Delphine?" Cosima asks after a few minutes.

Delphine turns to face Cosima. "Oui, mon amour?"

"Move in with me?" Cosima asks.

"I would love to." Delphine says reaching out a hand to stroke Cosima's cheek. She leans in for a quick kiss and then exhaustion takes over and they fall asleep holding each other.


	14. A Familiar Face

The next day, Cosima was helping Delphine move into her house.

"Hey, so these are your parents?" Cosima asks when she picks up a picture frame from a bookshelf in Delphine's living room.

"Oui, they are. You've been here at least a hundred times, how are you just now seeing the picture?"

"Well, I've never looked closely at it. I'm always distracted by you." Cosima says affectionately. "So, am I going to get to meet them?"

"You want to meet my parents?" Delphine asks

"Well yeah, we are in a relationship and you met mine." Cosima responds. "Have you told your parents about me?"

"I have told them about you, yes. But they are in Paris, they cannot fly here, they have work." Delphine says.

"Oh." Cosima says

"But they do want to meet you. Maybe we will visit them after your semester is over?" Delphine says. She walks behind Cosima and wraps her arms around Cosima's waist and kisses her neck. "I could take some time off of work."

"You want to take me to Paris? To meet your parents?" Cosima asked and then turns in Delphine's arms to face her wrapping her arms around Delphine's neck.

"Oui. I do." Delphine says looking down at Cosima.

"That's oddly…romantic." Cosima says. Her eyes flit to Delphine's lips and back up to her eyes. When she meets Delphine's eyes again, she sees dark pupils have replaced the hazel eyes she loves. "You know, Delphine, this is the last time you're gonna see your apartment. Don't you wanna say goodbye, y'know give it a proper send-off?"

"How would I do that?" Delphine asks her voice thick with arousal.

"Oh I'm sure we could think of some things to do." Cosima says.

Delphine crashes her lips to Cosima's and presses her hard up against the bookcase, taking Cosima a little off-guard. Cosima laughs at Delphine's urgency and eagerness. Delphine continues to kiss Cosima and Delphine's urgency soon becomes Cosima's urgency. They are all teeth and tongue and sloppy kisses. Delphine picks Cosima up and Cosima wraps her legs around Delphine.

They don't stop kissing as Delphine walks Cosima toward the couch in Delphine's living room. Delphine lays Cosima down and pushes her leg into Cosima's center. Cosima grinds down and groans at the contact. Briefly forgetting they were on a couch, Cosima goes to flip them over so she is on top. Delphine ends up on her back on the floor and Cosima ends up on top of her. Both women laugh at the situation. The urgency of the moment is gone, but they don't let it ruin the moment. They continue kissing until they are both panting from orgasm.

"You know," Delphine says eventually, "we have only given the living room a proper send-off."

Cosima turns to Delphine excitedly, "Why don't we say bye to the kitchen next?"

A few hours later after saying goodbye to the kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, and dining room, Delphine and Cosima are leaving Delphine's apartment and headed back to her and Delphine's house after a quick stop through a drive through for dinner.

"Wait, Cosima." Delphine says before they enter their house. It's late and they've decided to bring all of Delphine's stuff in tomorrow.

"What?" Cosima asks looking curiously at Delphine.

"It is an American custom to carry your significant other over the threshold of a house when they move in together, is it not?

"Well yeah," Cosima says and Delphine promptly picks her up bridal style, "but it's normally done after people get married."

"Oh. I can put you back down if you like." Delphine says

"No, no, no, I like this. It's sweet and you're really cute." Cosima says. Delphine finally walks Cosima into their new house. Delphine moves to put her down. "No, don't put me down. Carry me to our room."

"But, mon amour, there are stairs." Delphine says

"But I'm so tired and you're warm and comfy." Cosima says laying her head on Delphine's shoulder to emphasize her point.

Delphine shakes her head. "You're impossible, but you are cute, so I will carry you this one time."

When they get to their bedroom, they change into pajamas. Cosima is brushing her teeth when Delphine turns on the television. She is watching the news when she sees the image of a familiar face on the screen.

"Cosima! Cosima!" Delphine shouts.

"What?" Cosima says rushing from the bathroom her toothbrush in hand. Delphine points to the screen and Cosima is shocked by what she sees.

"We have reports that the woman who died at Huxley Station earlier this evening is Sarah Manning." The newswoman from the television says. The face that accompanies the woman's name is none other than Cosima's own face, staring right back at her.


	15. Sarah Manning

"Shit." Cosima says finally as she sits down on the edge of the bed.

"Cosima? Are you okay?" Delphine asks

"I uh, yeah, I'm fine. It's sad and weird." Cosima says

"She looks just like you." Delphine says

"Well, everyone has look-alikes I guess." Cosima says

"Look-alikes? Cosima, she looks exactly like you." Delphine says

"Yeah…" Cosima says. Her mind whirling. "I was adopted, you think, maybe we could be related?"

"Twins? It's a possibility." Delphine says

"Well she's either my twin or my clone." Cosima says "And last time I checked, human cloning was illegal and not possible."

Delphine gets up from the bed and grabs her laptop and then sits down next to Cosima at the edge of the bed. She types quickly. "Sarah Manning, 28, committed suicide earlier this evening when eyewitnesses saw her jump in front of a train. Foster brother Felix Dawkins identified her body earlier this evening." Delphine reads aloud.

"Foster brother?" Cosima says looking at the laptop with Delphine. "You think she could be adopted too?"

"Oui, that certainly seems the like logical answer. If you were adopted, it seems only reasonable that she was adopted too." Delphine says.

"You wanna look into it? In to her?" Cosima asks

"You want to find out more about her? About your birth parents?" Delphine asks

"Yeah, I do." Cosima says looking at Delphine.

"How do you suggest we do that?" Delphine asks.

"Well…I hadn't thought that through. We could look into her adoption." Cosima says

"We don't know where she was originally adopted from." Delphine points out

"I bet her brother knows." Cosima says

"You want to talk to her brother?" Delphine asks

"Yeah why, do you think it's a bad idea?" Cosima asks

"Well, his sister did just pass away and you and she share the same face." Delphine says. "It may be hard for him."

"You're right. Well, I could just explain the situation to him." Cosima says.

"Why don't we wait until morning to figure this out?" Delphine suggests.

"You're right; we can deal with this in the morning. I'm exhausted anyways." Cosima says

The next morning, Cosima and Delphine are making their way up to Felix's apartment having decided to go ahead and speak to him. After moving all of Delphine's stuff into Cosima's house, they headed to Felix's. They found his address through a small amount of googling. When they arrived at Felix's apartment Cosima knocked. No one answered at the first knock.

"Do you think he is home?" Delphine asked

"I don't know." Cosima said she knocked again.

After the second knock they could hear the sound of the door being unlocked. The door was opened.

"Shite." Says a woman who looks just like Cosima. "Not this again."

"Uh…" Cosima says shocked. "Are you-are you Sarah Manning? Wait, did you say again?"

The unnamed woman quickly slams the door on their faces. "Go away, I don't want anything to do with you!"

Cosima knocks again. "Please, we just want to talk to you!"

Sarah sighs and opens the door. "Alrigh', alrigh' just come in and sit down."

Cosima and Delphine sit down on the couch. "Well what do you want?" Sarah asks

"I'm Cosima and this is Delphine." Cosima asks. "Are you Sarah Manning?"

"Yeah, I am. What's it you?" Sarah says

"We saw the news. It said that you committed suicide." Delphine says

"Well they must've made a mistake then." Sarah says

"Mistake? Your brother identified your body. That's not a mistake." Cosima says. "Where is he anyways?"

"How do you know about my brother?" Sarah asks

"We saw your face on the news, we thought we might be related, and we found his address on the internet so we came here and…"

"And what? Decided to ask him about me? Why? I don't know what this is, but if this is some kind of sick joke…"

"Please. Sarah, it's not a joke. I thought we could be related, that's all, I swear." Cosima says.

Sarah rests her elbows on her knees and puts her face in her hands. She lets out a sigh. "Did you say again?" Cosima asks

"What?" Sarah asks. "Shit, yeah, yeah I did."

"What did you mean by that?" Cosima asks.

Sarah looks at Cosima, considering her. "I didn't commit suicide."

"We can see that." Cosima says.

"But someone who looks like you, like me, did. Her name was Elizabeth Childs. You think she could be another sister?" Sarah asks leaning forward.

"Triplets? It's certainly possible." Cosima says

"Shite."

"Why did the news say you committed suicide when it was this Elizabeth?" Delphine asks

Sarah looks down at her hands and then at Delphine. "So you really think we might be family?" Sarah asks Cosima.

"It looks like it." Cosima says

"And family is supposed to trust one another, righ'?" Sarah asks

"Yeah." Cosima says, unsure of where Sarah is going with this.

"Then I guess we should trust each other." Sarah says. It's against her better judgment, but Cosima and Delphine already know too much. It would be best just to tell them the truth. "I was in a sort of bind, Elizabeth jumped in front of the train, and we looked alike and I took her purse and…"

"You stole her identity." Cosima says finishing Sarah's sentence.

"Yeah." Sarah says

Just then Felix returns to his apartment. "Bloody hell Sarah, what's going on?" He says when he sees Cosima.

"Uh, Fee, this is Cosima and this is Delphine." Sarah says introducing the two women.

"Okay. Bloody hell, why?" Felix asked, obviously confused by the situation.

"Cosima is my sister. And Delphine is-" Sarah looks questioningly at Cosima and Delphine, still not sure of their relationship.

"I'm her girlfriend." Delphine says. "**Enchantée****.**"

"Oh. I see." Felix says. "And I get it." He says when he looks at Delphine.

A pink phone rings. Sarah ignores it. "Alison again?" Felix asks

"Yeah." Sarah replies.

"Who's Alison?" Cosima asks

"I don't know. This was Beth's phone. It keeps ringing though." Sarah says.

"Are you gonna tell her what happened?" Cosima asks

"It's a con Cosima, I can't tell anyone. Except Fee, you, and Delphine." Sarah says.

"Yeah, why did you do that?" Felix asks.

"Can we not discuss this righ' now, Fee?" Sara asks her brother.

"So, what now?" Cosima asks

"Now? What do you mean, now?"

"Well, we are family." Cosima says

"What, you wanna go out and have Thanksgiving dinner together? No. We go on with our lives and just move on." Sarah says.

"So we just leave and pretend this never happened?" Cosima asks

"No, that's not what I meant." Sarah says. "I've had enough weirdness for one day."

"But-" Cosima starts. Sarah glares at her.

"Maybe you should go." Felix says looking apologetically at Cosima and Delphine.

"Maybe you are right." Delphine says pulling Cosima by the arm towards the door.

"Before we go, do you know who your birth parents were?" Cosima asks.

"No, I was an orphan in an orphanage." Sarah says.

"Maybe Mrs. S. knows something." Felix suggests.

"Maybe. I don't know. Why would she?" Sarah says

"We can ask her." Felix says

Sarah sighs. "You're righ', I guess we can."

"Okay then." Felix says. "Here's my number and here's her number," Felix writes down his and Sarah's number for Cosima and gives them to her. "Just call tomorrow around midnight and we'll tell you if we found anything."

"Thank you, Felix." Cosima says

"Oui, merci." Delphine says.

"Well that was interesting." Cosima says after he closes the door.

"It was." Delphine says. "Do you think they'll do it? That they'll help?"

"I think so." Cosima says.

Back in Felix's apartment Felix looks at his sister who has her head in her hands.

"You know we have to help them." Felix says.

"Why? Why did you agree to help them, Fee? You expect me to go to Mrs. S. after what happened?" Sarah asks

"I think this is a good opportunity for you to get back to Kira and make-up with S. Besides, your sister is asking for your help."

Sarah leans back on the couch and looks at Felix. "Alrigh', Alright', I'll go to Mrs S. tomorrow."

Beth's pink phone rings again. In a suburban house not too far away, Alison Hendrix puts down her pink phone and wipes a tear from her eye. Beth always answers for her.


	16. Alison Hendrix

The next day, Sarah Manning was headed to Mrs. S' house. She didn't want to go alone, so she insisted on Felix going with her. She was nervous, though she didn't want to admit it. They stopped outside the front door.

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Fee?" Sarah asked. "What if she won't let me see Kira?"

"It'll be fine, love." Felix reassured his sister. "You're her mother; she has to let you see her."

"I hope you're right, if she kicks me out it's your fault." Sarah says. She knocks on the door.

"What are you doing here?" Siobhan Sadler asked when she opened the door.

"It's nice to see you too." Sarah said. "I'm here to see Kira."

"After you left her?" Siobhan says.

"Look, I know I made a mistake. But I'm back now and I want to make up for it." Sarah says.

"Tell her about Cosima." Felix says

"Who?" Siobhan says.

"I have a sister." Sarah says

"A sister?" Siobhan asks surprised.

"Yeah, a twin sister. You wouldn't know anything about that would you?" Sarah asks

"No, I wouldn't." Siobhan says.

"Mummy?" Kira asks from behind Siobhan.

"Monkey?" Sarah's angry behavior instantly cooled down when she saw her daughter peeking out from behind Siobhan.

Siobhan opened the door and reluctantly let Sarah in. Sarah bent down and gave her daughter a hug.

"I've missed you monkey." Sarah said.

"I missed you too." Kira said.

"Hey, what about me?" Felix said.

"Uncle Felix!" Kira said and then gave her uncle a big hug.

"So what is this about a sister?" Siobhan asks Sarah

"She found me yesterday and wanted to know about her, our, birth parents. I was hoping you'd be able to help." Sarah said.

"I have an aunt?" Kira asked looking at her mother.

"Looks like it, monkey." Sarah said.

"I don't know, Sarah. I could look into it for you, if you want." Siobhan said.

"Yeah, that'd be great." Sarah says.

"I'll have to make a few calls. Why don't you and Felix stay here while I make those calls?" Siobhan says.

"See, told you everything would be fine." Felix says when Siobhan moves to the other room.

"Do I get to meet your sister?" Kira asked.

"Maybe one day, monkey." Sarah said.

"Okay." Kira said. "Wanna see me play on the piano? I've been practicing."

"Yeah, that sounds great." Sarah said.

"Cosima would you please relax?" Delphine says as Cosima lets out another groan of frustration. "Sarah said to call at midnight. It is only four o'clock."

"I know, but I don't like being patient." Cosima says.

"I know chérie, but you need to learn patience." Delphine says. Cosima groans again. "Or we could do something else to keep you occupied."

"What do you have in mind?" Cosima asked.

Delphine moves from her position on the couch to straddle Cosima. "I have a few ideas." Delphine says as she moves in to kiss Cosima slowly. Cosima responds by biting Delphine's lower lip.

"I like where this is going." Cosima says as Delphine kisses her again.

Cosima's hands move up the front of Delphine's shirt, gently squeezing her breasts. Cosima removes Delphine's shirt and then her bra and continues to palm her breasts. Delphine then removes Cosima's shirt and bra, her kisses moving down to Cosima's breasts. Delphine takes a nipple in her mouth and bites gently. Cosima groans and her hips thrust into Delphine's. Delphine moves her hands to Cosima's pants to remove them. Cosima lifts her hips so that Delphine can take her pants off. In one swift movement, Cosima's pants and underwear are gone. Then Cosima works at removing Delphine's clothes. It doesn't take long before Delphine is free of her clothes as well.

Each woman groans at the contact of the other woman. Delphine moves her hand to Cosima's center and pushes her fingers in just as Cosima does the same to her. "Together." Cosima whispers into Delphine's ear before nibbling on her ear.

They pump into each other in an easy rhythm. They revel in the feeling of being inside each other and having the other inside them. Cosima's free hand winds its way into Delphine's hair as their kisses become more heated as they near climax. Delphine puts her free hand on the back of the couch to give herself more leverage.

They move into each other faster and harder as they feel the other's walls tighten around their fingers. With a few more pumps and curls of fingers, they are both climaxing. Delphine collapses on Cosima.

"Good, right?" Cosima asks her forehead touching Delphine's.

"Mmhmm." Delphine responds. "We should do that more often. You know, I could really go for some eskimo pies right now."

"Your wish is my command." Cosima says. She removes herself from Delphine's grip and runs to the kitchen. A few seconds later and she's back empty handed. "They're all gone."

"Did you eat them all, again?" Delphine asks

"Nooo." Cosima says obviously lying.

"Well, there is this new ice cream shop in town." Delphine suggests. "We could go there."

"I saw that too, it looks good." Cosima says. "Okay, let's get dressed and get some ice cream!"

"So what flavor do you want?" Cosima asks once they're at the ice cream shop.

"Well I like vanilla." Delphine says."

"Vanilla, but that's boring. Why don't I order for you?" Cosima asks.

"Okay, I trust you." Delphine says.

"Hi" Cosima says to the cashier when they are ready to order. "She would like a small serving of cookies and cream and I would like a small serving of rocky road."

When they get their ice cream, they sit down. Cosima watches Delphine intently when she takes the first bite.

"This is good. I like it." Delphine says.

Cosima smiles. "I knew you would."

"So, if you can find your birth parents, what will you do?" Delphine asks.

"Wow, that's a big question. How long have you wanted to ask that?" Cosima asks

"I am curious." Delphine says

"Well, I don't know. I really don't know. I guess I would ask them why they gave me, us, up." Cosima says referring to Sarah. "I do want to meet them, but what if they don't want to meet me?"

"Well, then they are missing out on a wonderful person." Delphine says. Her foot rubs against Cosima's under the table. "What do you think of your new sister and brother?"

"Well, he seems nice. But she's a con artist. She's a criminal." Cosima says.

"She seems okay to me, underneath it all." Delphine says.

"Yeah, I mean, she barely knows me, but she trusts me. She agreed to help me and doesn't even know me." Cosima says.

"You could have family with them Cosima." Delphine says.

"Yeah, I could. It's not that I'm trying to replace my old family, they're great and I love them to death. They're just another addition to the family." Cosima says.

"Another? Was there an addition that I missed?" Delphine asks

"You're my family too, Delphine." Cosima says amused that her girlfriend seems to have overlooked this fact.

"Oh." Delphine smiles at that. "And you are my family." Delphine covers Cosima's hand with her own.

"Let's get out of here." Cosima says

"Okay." Delphine responds. They leave the ice cream shop hand in hand.

"Sarah, I made contact with my people." Siobhan says.

"What did they say?" Sarah asks.

"They gave me two names, Susan and Ethan Duncan."

"So they're my parents? Our parents?" Sarah asks.

"Well that's the thing; they said they didn't know who your parents were. All they said was that Susan and Ethan probably knew who they were."

"That's helpful." Sarah says sarcastically.

"There's another thing," Siobhan says. "They died in a fire about twenty-eight years ago."

"Well that's even more helpful." Sarah says. "So there was nothing else?"

"No, that's all they told me." Siobhan says.

"Alright, thanks." Sarah says. "Thanks for everything. I know I wasn't always there for her, but you were. So thanks."

Siobhan is taken aback by Sarah's statement. "Why don't you come back tomorrow?"

"Really? That'd be great, yeah." Sarah says.

"Are you leaving again, mummy?" Kira asks returning from the kitchen with her juice box, Felix right behind her.

"I am, but I'll be back tomorrow. I promise." Sarah says. She hugs her daughter and then she and Felix leave. Sarah heads back to Beth's apartment and Felix heads back to his.

Sarah goes back to Beth's bedroom and lies down waiting for Cosima's call. A few minutes later, there's a knock at the door.

"Beth let me in! I know you're in there! Please Beth, don't ignore me!" A familiar voice shouts from the outside of the door.

Sarah gets up from her position and decided to open the door. She is greeted by a familiar face, her face.

"Beth, thank God!" Alison Hendrix rushes in to the apartment and hugs Sarah thinking she's Beth. Sarah is utterly confused. She figures another sister has made her way out of the woodwork. She doesn't know what to do.

Sarah is surprised and is at a loss for words when Alison pulls away. "Beth, are you okay?" Alison asks.

"I-uh…" Sarah says. "Are you drunk?" Sarah forgets that Beth doesn't have an accent and speaks in her normal voice.

"Maybe a little, after what you told me and after what I told you and then I pushed you away, I feel horrible Beth, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to shout." Alison says, she doesn't notice Sarah's accent.

"Okay, um, why don't you just lie down and rest, yeah?" Sarah asks

"Okay. You always know what to do Beth." Alison says.

Sarah helps Alison into the bed then her phone rings. It's midnight. "Hello?" She asks.

"Sarah, it's Cosima." Cosima says through the phone. "You told me to call at midnight."

"What? Oh, yeah." Sarah says. She's really confused.

"So? Did you find anything about our parents?" Cosima asks.

"I-uh, yeah I did. Uh…do you think we could talk in person?" Sarah asks thinking it's better if Cosima can see this new person for herself. She figures the person is Alison, the one who has been calling Beth non-stop.

"In person? Now?" Cosima asks

"Yeah, please?" Sarah asks.

"Yeah, I guess. Where are you?" Cosima asks. Sarah gives Cosima her address and hangs up.

"She wants to meet? It's a bit late for that isn't it?" Delphine asks

"She seemed a bit stressed or something." Cosima says. "Will you come with me?"

"Of course." Delphine says.

Together they head to the address Sarah gave them. When they get there they are greeted by Sarah.

"Hey." Cosima says.

"Hi, come in. There's something I think you should see." Sarah says. She pulls Cosima to the bedroom

"Who's that?" Cosima says upon seeing Alison's familiar looking face.

"I think her name is Alison. Someone named Alison has been calling Beth for the past few days and now she's so, so that's gotta be her, right?" Sarah asks

"Wow, yeah, that makes sense I guess." Cosima says.

"So, are we quadruplets or something?" Sarah asks.

"Yeah, I guess, what else would we be?" Cosima says.

Alison stirs in the bed. Her eyes open slowly and focus on the three people standing at the door.

"Beth? What's going on?" Alison asks.

"You haven't told her?" Cosima asks.

"She was drunk; I didn't know what to do." Sarah says.

"Told me what? Beth what's going on?" Alison asks.


	17. Genetic Identicals

"Shite." Sarah says, raking her hand through her hair. Alison has sobered up a bit by now and she takes in Sarah's appearance and accent.

"Just one I am a few, no family too, who am I?" Alison asks. She knows Sarah isn't Beth.

Sarah doesn't answer. "Where is Beth?" Alison asks.

Sarah sits down on the bed beside her. "Look, I'm sorry Alison, but Beth is dead."

"Dead?" No, no, no, that's not possible. I just spoke to her this morning." Alison says

"I'm sorry Alison, but I saw it happen." Sarah says. "She jumped in front of a train."

"Suicide?" Alison asks. "But she wouldn't- she couldn't- I'm gonna be sick." Alison says. She rushes to the bathroom. She retches into the toilet. Delphine rushes to the kitchen for some water. After a few minutes she stops and Sarah helps her stand. "But she said- she was- oh god." Alison says. She can't seem to finish a sentence. Tears begin to fall from her eyes. Cosima hurries to her side, while Sarah looks utterly confused. Alison cries in Cosima's shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Alison." Cosima says. "But we're here for you; we're your sisters after all."

"Sisters?" Alison chokes out. "You think we're related?"

"Well yeah, what else is there?" Sarah says.

"We're clones." Alison says through sobs. "We're genetic experiments and they're killing us! Beth said she'd be here, that she would protect me!"

"What?" Sarah says. "Clones?"

"Yeah, clones." Alison says.

"Cosima is that possible?" Sarah asks.

Cosima looks at Delphine. "I don't know."

"It's illegal." Delphine says

"That doesn't mean it's not possible." Cosima says

"How do you know that we're clones?" Cosima asks Alison.

"Beth told me. Someone named Katja contacted her and told her. She brought proof." Alison says.

"What kind of proof?" Cosima asks.

"I don't know." Alison says wiping her eyes. "She said that she was meeting Katja who would give her a briefcase that had all the proof in it."

"How do we get in contact with this Katja person?" Delphine asks

"Beth had her number." Alison says.

"Do you think we should contact her?" Cosima asks

"I don't know." Sarah says. "This seems all a bit insane to me."

"It couldn't hurt." Delphine says.

"You're Beth," Cosima says to Sarah. "You have her phone right?"

"Yeah," Sarah says. "You think this is a good idea?"

"Maybe." Cosima says. "Just call her and set up a meeting."

"I've gotta be outta my mind." Sarah says as she dials the number. Katja picks up. Sarah sets up a time and place to meet her. "Alright, meetings all set."

"What now?" Cosima asks

"I guess we just meet back here tomorrow after I meet this Katja person." Sarah says.

"Okay, I guess we'll go." Cosima says.

"You're leaving?" Alison asks

"We'll be back tomorrow." Cosima assures Alison. Then she and Delphine leave.

"Do you need someone to take you home Alison?" Sarah asks

"What?" Alison asks. "No, no, no, I can't go home right now. My kids can't see me like this."

"Okay." Sarah says "Where are you gonna go?"

"Can I stay here?" Alison asks Sarah.

"Uh, yeah I guess." Sarah says.

Alison nods and then falls onto the bed. She hugs a pillow. The side of the bed she goes to was Beth's side.

"Guess I'll take the couch then." Sarah says to herself. She settles into the couch, but doesn't fall asleep. She can't stop wondering if Alison's crazy, if she's crazy, or if it's all true. She would just have to wait until tomorrow.


End file.
